To Have and To Hold
by Kirsty Welsh
Summary: When job and private life clash life becomes more than a little difficult for the duo. Can Starsky continue, and can Hutch help his partner? COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Starsky and Hutch were bored. There was no two ways about it, boredom hung in the air in the car like a lead weight. It was 11:00pm on a Friday night and Huggy had invited them to the Pits for free drinks which was an occasion in itself and yet here they were, in the car, watching a plain, stone wall with a wrought iron gate while playing I spy for the sixth time.

'Somethin' beginning with B' the brunet sighed.

'If you say blackness one more time Starsk….'

'Oh gee, ya got it. Let's face it there aint nuthin else to see out here. Delaney aint at home and he hasn't been all night.'

'But he might come back' Hutch pointed out logically.

'And there again he might decide to stay out all night and we're stuck here like two lemons. There should be a law against it.'

The blond snickered. 'I've worked with you for ten years now, an' I'd be rich if I had a dime for every time you said "there should be a law against it". According to you, crimes should only be committed between the hours of 9:00am and 5:00pm, Monday to Friday when the temperature is between 72 and 75 degrees.'

'Well yeah, that's civilised' Starsky agreed, obviously pleased with those arrangements.

'Did it ever strike you that the turkeys we meet are very rarely civilized buddy?'

'Well that's another thing. Maybe we should think about doin' somethin' else. I mean, I don't know about you, but this job has played hell with my love life, it's antisocial an' I'm getting' kinda fed up with bein' target practice for every flake in Bay City.'

Hutch snickered. 'You were complaining a minute ago that this stinks and you were fed up of staring at a stone wall. Now you're saying you don't want excitement. Make your mind up bud.'

'I just mean I'd like a nice, normal job for a change. Like….. I could be a photographer.'

'Uh huh, an' I could be an actor. It aint gonna happen buddy. We're stuck with life as a cop till we're old an' grey and we have a waistline like Dobey's.'

'There aint no way I'll ever have a waistline like Dobey's, I'd shoot myself first' the brunet said defensively. The mic. crackled into life interrupting any further discussion and with a deep sigh, Starsky took it off the cradle and answered.

'This is Zebra three, please tell me we've won the lotto and we don't need to work no more.'

The woman's voice sounded down the line. 'Sorry boys. There's a 219, that's a report of a domestic disturbance at 2051 West Wilshire. Please respond.'

'Report of domestic. Wonderful. Zebra three rolling. Out.' Starsky started the engine and continued his tirade. 'Terrific! After four hours of watching the bugs crawl over Delaney's wall, we get to go an' break up some spoiled couple's fight over whether they have sex before or after the champagne. Beam me up Scotty, please.'

'Who? Beam what? Starsk, are you really on the same planet as the rest of us?'

The brunet looked shocked. 'Beam me up….. that's what Captain Kirk always says. Ya know? Captain Kirk?'

'Is he the new guy in narcotics?' Hutch asked, straight faced.

'Are you havin' me on?'

'I just want a conversation in English buddy, that's all.'

Starsky hauled the car around a sharp left hand corner and pushed the gas pedal down again. 'Don't tell me you've never watched Star Trek? I thought everyone watched Star Trek. It's great. It's ground breakin'.'

'It's drivel.'

'It's Wilshire' the brunet mumbled, slowing the car as he got onto the street in question. 'What number did Mildred say?'

Hutch looked at the number written on the palm of his hand '2051.'

Slowly, the cops cruised down the broad street scanning the numbers on the post boxes, finally pulling up outside 2051 just in time to hear a blood curdling scream come from inside. Quick as a flash, the two cops got out of the car and ran up the steep driveway, walking up the side of the house and round the back. With guns ready, just in case, Hutch knocked on the back door.

'Police, open up' he shouted through the glass window. There was a moment's silence and then the sound of something being thrown across the room.

'Allow me' Starsky grunted, took a step backwards and kicked out at the door, making it swing back heavily on its hinges.

'You could have tried the handle' the blond muttered, leaning his back on the lintel, his gun pointing skywards.

Cautiously they looked into a small corridor leading to what looked like a kitchen. As they both went in, they could hear yelling from the room ahead. At the door to the kitchen, they witnessed a scene of almost total destruction. Pots, pans, crockery and cutlery lay strewn across the floor, a central island unit separating a huge, bull necked man from a cowering woman, her hands over her head as she sobbed and screamed.

'Come here ya fuckin' useless bitch' the man yelled. 'Burn my shirt again woman an' I'll fuckin' kill ya. Now get over here an'….'

'And what?' Hutch said sharply coming up on the big man from behind.

The guy wheeled around, a stunned look on his face, obviously not expecting to have another man in the house.

'Who the hell…..? Who the fuck are you?'

'BCPD. We were alerted to a disturbance. Step away from the wall sir and put your hands where I can see 'em' Hutch said smoothly.

'You don't understand. She…..'

The blond put his hand up. 'You can tell me your side of things in a minute, just calm down huh?'

While Hutch was talking to the man, Starsky walked over to the woman curled up into a ball down by the side of the door. He hunkered down by her side and gently put a hand on her arm. 'Hey, you ok?' he asked.

Slowly, the woman lifted her head and stared at him from a tear streaked face. Her lip was split and she had a large gash on her forehead that was bleeding in a steady trickle down her cheek. She sniffed. 'Yeah, m'ok' she whispered.

'C'mon, let me help you up. We can go sit down in there and you can tell me what's been goin' on.'

'Nothing went on' she said, looking over her shoulder at her husband. 'I'm clumsy, I just fell. Manny was just gonna help me up.'

'Uh huh. Where did ya fall honey?' the brunet said, looking around.

'I just fell' she said simply, but she managed to get herself to her feet and followed Starsky into a large and well appointed living room. Like a little girl lost, she perched on the edge of one of the sofas while the brunet went in search of a bathroom, returning a moment later with a washcloth soaked in cold water. Gently he lifted her chin and dabbed at the bloody wound. She hissed and flinched away and without a word, Starsky handed her the cloth.

'Thank you' she mumbled.

'What's your name?' Starsky asked softly. Now that she had stopped trying to hide herself away, he could see that she was a pretty girl. Maybe 21 or 22, she seemed a lot younger than her husband. She had short, brown hair, a small, elfin face and large brown eyes. While not classically beautiful, she was pretty in a homely sort of way, her slim frame tiny against the huge furniture in the room. Not the sort he usually went for, but there was something about the waif of a girl that attracted the brunet.

'Melanie' she said quietly, as though scared to make a noise.

'Hi Melanie, I'm Dave, and my partner in there is Hutch. We want to help, but we can't unless you tell us what happened.

She looked over her shoulder as though her husband was coming into the room. 'Like I said, I fell. I'm just clumsy' she said.

Starsky sat back on his heels. 'Are ya sure honey? I mean, it's ok, you can tell me if sumthin else was happenin'. We're here to help.'

'I just get so….. my Mom used to say I was a klutz. I'm clumsy, I guess that's all there is to it.'

'Does he hit you?' the brunet asked gently.

Melanie shook her head. 'No' she said, although the answer in no way convinced the cop.

'Honey just tell us what happened and we can have him arrested for the night. This don't look like a fall to me.'

'No, I fell, really that's all that happened' she said and shrank back as from the other room Manny yelled at her 'Tell 'em, you little bitch, tell 'em how you fell. Tell 'em I never laid a hand on ya.'

Melanie shivered and put her hand up to her head. 'He didn't hit me' she said softly. 'He loves me…..and I love him. He's my husband.'

Starsky got up and walked into the kitchen to stand by Hutch. He pulled the blond to one side, away from the huge man.

'She's scared out of her wits an' you can't tell me that was just a fall.'

Hutch nodded in agreement. 'He says she's clumsy and falls all the time. This was just one of those things.'

'And you believe him?' the brunet's eyebrows rose.

'Looking at the size of her, and comparing her to Raging Bull over there, would you believe him?' Hutch asked.

'Hey, Abbot and Costello, didn't your Mom's never tell you it's rude to whisper? 'Specially in another man's house.'

'I don't call it manly when a guy beats up on his wife. Shuddup' Starsky snapped, his finger pointing at Manny.

'I never laid a finger on her' the big man sneered. 'An' you can't prove otherwise if she won't say nothin' against me. She won't ya know. She loves me, that's why.'

'What d'you want to do?' Hutch asked quietly, keeping one eye on the man.

'I want to take him in, that's what I want to do.'

'Well we can't if she won't press charges.'

'I know that' the brunet said desperately, 'but she needs help.'

'They all do Starsk, but how many times have we heard "he only beats me coz he loves me officer"? Our hands are tied.'

Manny was getting impatient. 'Yo, when are you two gonna leave? It's getting kinda crowded in here. Me an' my wife want some time alone.'

'We'll go when we're convinced she's safe' Starsky muttered.

'Safe from who? Me, or two low life cops like you, comin' round here, throwin' your weight around. I know your type. Always take the woman's side. I bet you've got a woman in every street don't ya cop? Like a little afternoon delight do ya?'

Starsky took a deep breath, Hutch's calming hand on his shoulder. 'Not now partner' he heard the blond hiss.

The brunet ignored Manny and walked past the big man, making towards the living room. As he passed, Manny shot out a hand and spun the brunet round, slamming him into the wall so that Starsky's teeth rattled in his head. Hutch immediately took a hold of Manny's arm and Starsky grabbed a hold of the other, pushing the big man round and down over the island in the middle of the kitchen. With his free hand Starsky got his cuffs from his back pocket and slapped them on Manny's wrists before hauling him upright and glaring up into his red face.

'That's it punk, you're going in. You can make any complaints down at the Metro. C'mon bozo.'

The two cops started to pull the big man from his kitchen whilst all the time Manny was yelling over his shoulder to the woman still sitting in the living room

'Mel, you get on that phone woman. You call my lawyer and tell him to get his ass down town and sort out my bail. Ya hear me woman? Mel? You tell him to get me out.'


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Hutch loaded Manny into the back of the Torino, his hand on the top of the big man's head to stop him from doing himself an injury. It seemed pointless, as the blond really would have preferred to have slammed the sanctimonious giant into the body of the car. Manny continued to protest his innocence as Hutch got into the car while at the kitchen door, Starsky was still trying to get Melanie to come down to the station to press charges.

'We can protect you, if that's what you're worried about' the brunet urged. He hated the fact that this woman was so obviously hurt by her husband and yet still sought to protect him.

'I said I'm fine. I should go. I have to make a phone call. Manny will want his lawyer waiting for him at the police station.' Melanie gave a little smile.

'And what Manny wants, Manny gets huh?'

'He isn't a bad man Dave. He just…. He's very passionate about things. He likes things to be done right and he doesn't like mistakes.'

'Is that why he hit you? Coz you made a mistake?' Starsky snapped.

Melanie ducked her head, sighing. 'Like I said, I fell.'

'Whatever. I don't know what it is with you women an' I really wish I could understand. We're here, this is what we do. Just let us help, please.' Starsky cocked his head on one side, the urge to enfold this tiny woman in his arms almost too strong to fight. Inside he snickered at himself. _Great Davey boy. Some kinda cop you are! You're supposed to catch the bad guys, not get suckered by every hard luck story out on the street._

Melanie took his hand and squeezed it. 'I know you don't understand, but Manny has been good to me. I can't just start pressing charges, he's my husband. I owe him.'

'You owe him enough for him to beat up on ya?' Starsky asked angrily.

'Please, leave it. I appreciate that you care, really I do. It means a lot, but now, you have a job to do, and I should make the call. Thank you' Melanie was about to close the door when the brunet put his foot in the way.

'You know where we are if you need us?'

She nodded. 'I know. Thanks.'

The curly haired cop walked slowly back to the car and opened the door. Getting in, he started the engine but even the throaty roar of the V8 didn't drown out Manny's moaning and sniping.

'You have no right to take me in.'

'Was she ok?' Hutch asked his partner, ignoring the man in the back.

'I said, you have no right to take me in!' Manny said again, louder.

'I'll never understand these women as long as I live!' the brunet admitted. 'She was obviously beaten and yet he has her so messed up, she's coverin' for him.'

'Hey, quit thinking about that stupid little bitch and start thinkin' about your jobs huh? When my lawyer gets a hold of you he's gonna make sure you never patrol these streets again. My lawyer is….'

Starsky brought the Torino to a shuddering halt by the sidewalk, the tyres squealing in protest and turned in his seat to glare at the man in the back seat. 'Be thankful you're back there, an' I'm here. And be thankful that I hate clearin' blood out of my car, coz so help me there is nothin' I'd like better than to give your lawyer a real good opportunity to fire my ass. What you did to your wife is dirty and cowardly. You're a bully an' I hate bullies. You treat her like….'

'The way I treat my wife is my concern. The silly little bitch is clumsy. She told you she fell. Where's the crime in that huh? You'd be better usin' your time to catch proper criminals instead of making dates with my wife.'

The brunet was half way out of his own seat and into the back before Hutch managed to grab a hold of the waistband of his jeans and haul him back down into the driver's seat.

'Leave it Starsk' he hissed. 'He's baiting ya. His sort would love to see you hauled in before IA.'

'Yeah, listen to your partner' Manny snarled. 'At least one of you seems to have a brain cell.'

It was Hutch's turn to glare at the cuffed man. 'Oh don't flatter yourself. I'm not doin' this to protect you. To be truthful, he's a Rotweiller and I kinda like to see him bring turkeys like you down a peg or two, but we're due to clock off in a couple of hours an' filling in the paperwork for injuries to prisoners is kinda time consuming. If you know what's good for you, you'll just keep it zipped huh?'

'I'm gonna make a formal complaint. I'm gonna…'

Manny's further mutterings were drowned out by both detectives yelling 'SHUT UP' in unison and the rest of the drive down to the Metro was accomplished in relative silence.

Once in the parking lot, Hutch handed Manny over to the custody sergeant while Starsky skipped upstairs to fill in their time log and document the arrest. Hutch joined him a few minutes later and between them they started to type the arrest report.

It took a while. Starsky's typing was not wonderful at the best of times and now, his temper still at simmering point his fingers refused to hit the right keys. After the third form had been ripped from the typewriter, crumpled up and thrown across the office in anger, Hutch looked up from his own work.

'Someone rearrange the keys while you were out?' he asked mildly.

'Someone needs to rearrange his head' Starsky retorted, savagely jamming another pencil between his teeth and starting on his fourth attempt.

'This one's really got to you hasn't it?'

The brunet looked up sharply. 'Huh? Oh, well um…. dunno. I guess I just hate to see big men beatin' up on little women. Mrs. Kralevski in 2nd grade used to tell me I had an overdeveloped sense of injustice.'

'Well you should always listen to Mrs. Kralevski buddy. This is just one more statistic. We've seen it all before. Write the report and move on huh?'

'Is that it? Is that all you've got to say on the matter?'

'It's all I can say buddy. I can see the signs. You're letting it get personal and you know you can't. Just write the damned form and let's get outa here.'

'We gonna interview him before we go?'

'Do you want to? He was getting' ya pretty riled up for a while there' Hutch said doubtfully. 'We're due off in three quarters of an hour. We could hand it over to one of the other guys.'

The smaller man considered for a moment. The twenty-five minutes it had taken to get from Wilshire down to the Metro had not been pleasant. Manny had refused to keep his mouth closed and Starsky found that his knuckles were white around the steering wheel and his head was beginning to pound by the time he's parked up. Did he really want to put himself through that again? Especially when he could so easily hand it over to the next shift. Eventually he shook his head.

'Fine, give it to Knight, he can make mince meat out of the turkey. I need a drink and an aspirin.'

'Good call. I'll go find Knight and brief him and I'll see you in the car. Don't be too long. Cold beer awaits' Hutch said, taking his jacket from the back of the chair and threading his way through the chairs and desks out to the corridor.

Starsky grunted and made a valiant attempt at retyping the form a fourth time. He managed to accomplish the feat with only two minor typos and no more than a dozen curses. He pulled the form from the machine, signed it with a flourish and was just about to file it in the in tray when he saw a small figure walking down the corridor outside his room.

Rushing from the office, Starsky caught up with Melanie in the corridor and put a hand on her shoulder. She jumped and looked around and once again, the brunet winced at the gash on her forehead and the now blossoming bruise over her right eye.

'Dave!' she said, surprised that they should meet again so soon.

'Hey, I saw you walking by and um… I just wanted to….'

'Yes?'

The brunet snorted. How long had it been since he'd been tongue-tied talking to a girl? He felt like a teenager all over again and took a deep breath.

'I just wanted to make sure you were ok?' he asked.

'I'm fine. A little sore, but nothing is broken. Bruises fade.'

'You don't have to live like that you know. You don't deserve to be treated like that.'

She looked at him quizzically. 'You don't know me. How would you know how I deserve to be treated?'

'I know he's a big guy and you can't have a hope of defending yourself if he rounds on you again. I hate to think that he's hurting you.'

'I'm touched that you care' she said softly.

'Of course I care. I wouldn't be much of a cop if I didn't.'

'But this seems over and above. Thank you anyway, it's nice that someone makes the effort to…. I'm glad you were there when I….. fell' she finished.

'Are you sure you don't need to go to the hospital?'

Melanie shook her head. 'No, I'm fine, honest. Manny is with his lawyer now. I'm um… I can't press charges.'

'Can't, or won't?' Starsky asked.

'I can't. Like I said, I fell. Where's the crime in that?'

The brunet sighed, knowing there was no way he would be able to change the woman's mind. In desperation, he reached into his back pocket and took out his wallet. He grabbed a card from it and scribbled his telephone number on the back, underlining it twice. 'Here' he said, handing it to the girl. 'For the next time you "fall down". Don't hesitate, just call me huh? Anytime.'

Melanie took the card and looked at it. "Dave Starsky, Detective Sergeant Bay City Police Department" it read and the Metro telephone number. She looked at the number on the back of the card and up at him with big brown eyes. 'Yours?' she asked.

Starsky coughed self consciously. 'Yeah, my number. We're not always here an'….. I just want you to be safe. Keep it, and use it if you have to. Promise?'

'I promise' she said shyly and turned to walk away just as her husband turned the corner into the corridor.

'Where the hell have you been?' he yelled, his face red and his hands on his hips.

'Manny! I was waiting for you. I was just talking to….'

'I saw who you were talkin' to. What the hell are you talkin' to that moron for? Come away, we're going home woman. I've told you about talking to guys before.' The big man grabbed for Melanie's arm and she yelped. 'When are you gonna start listening to me you stupid little bitch.'

Starsky's hand shot out even before he thought about it. He grabbed a hold of Manny's wrist and pulled him away forcibly his indigo eyes boring into the big mans.

'We don't want any more "falls" here do we?' the cop snarled.

Manny looked at his with scorn. 'Get your dirty hands off of me pig. What happened between me and my wife is my concern, not your.' He wrenched his hand away and pulled Melanie along the corridor with him. She looked back over her shoulder at Starsky who stood with his hands balled into fists, half of him wanting to knock the big man to the ground there and then while the other, saner half told him to stay out of it.

As the couple disappeared around the corner, he let out the breath he didn't know he'd been holding, went back into the squad room to collect his jacket and headed off down to the car and his waiting partner.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Crime in Bay City seemed to be at an all time low. It seemed that most of the criminal element were on vacation and it was what they called in the trade a slow news week. Consequently, during one of the hottest Augusts on record, Starsky and Hutch were penned up in the office, finishing paperwork, huddling round the single meagre electric fan and becoming more tetchy by the hour. Eventually, at 3:30 the next day, Hutch had had enough of listening to his partner's deep, heart wrenching sighs and tuneless whistle and headed off in search of the Captain, emerging a quarter of an hour later with a smile on his face.

'C'mon partner. Hang up your gun, we're on vacation for a couple of days.'

The brunet looked up from his form filling, a drop of perspiration dangling from the tip of his nose. He wiped at it with the back of his hand. 'How did you wangle that one?' he asked. 'Not that I'm complainin'. I mean who'd want to be cooped up in here when there's all that sunshine not bein' used up.'

'I asked Dobey. I told him if I didn't get out of here, I wouldn't be held responsible for my actions. He said go, so I didn't argue.'

'Well it aint like we're run off of our feet an' if I see another arrest report, I'm gonna go nuts. How long did you say you negotiated?'

'Two whole days buddy, and I can see a bottle of beer with my name on it waiting at the bar on the beach.'

Starsky grinned, put his pens and pencils neatly in his drawer and waited while Hutch cleared his own desk using the "swipe it all into the drawer with your arm" technique. A moment later, both detectives headed out of the squad room and down to the parking lot without a backwards glance.

Starsky drove out of the cool dimness of the garage and into the bright, harsh, hot sunlight of the road outside. Hutch put his Ray Bans on and handed Starsky his own pair. They drove quickly, but instead of heading back out to Venice Place, Starsky turned off the freeway a couple of exits early and took a broad avenue out towards the suburbs. The blond raised his eyebrows, but said nothing as Starsky hung a left and headed back down Wilshire, the Torino motoring slowly as they passed 2051. The brunet almost drew to a halt as he bent forward and studied the house. It seemed quiet and he quickly drove off, leaving his partner dumbfounded.

'Starsk, what the hell are ya doin'?'

'Huh?'

'You were checking out Manny and his wife, weren't ya?'

'No!.....yeah…..I just wanted to …..'

'You wanted another round with man mountain?' Hutch asked.

'God no.'

'Then what?'

Starsky shrugged defensively 'Nuthin.'

'Uh uh. I don't buy that. She really got to you didn't she?' Hutch pressed.

'Kinda. I just hate the fact that he beat up on her. She's so tiny.'

'And she's also refusing to press charges. What can we do huh? It's no use worrying about her type Starsk, she's beyond hope. She either enjoys pain, or she's too spineless to change her life. These women are all the same, it's easier to live with the beatings than do something about it. You'll never change her, so don't get riled up about it.'

'That's a bit hard isn't it?' Starsky asked.

'It's the way of the world buddy. I don't mean to be harsh, just realistic and I know you're a soft touch for a hard luck story.'

The brunet grinned. 'Yeah, that's me. Dave Starsky, walk over extraordinaire.'

Hutch thumped him on the arm and grinned. 'Uh huh. A regular pussy cat. C'mon, beer and girls await and there's still hours of sunshine left. Drop me off at mine and then I'll swing by your place in an hour.'

Two hours later both men were dressed in cut off jeans and tee shirts and were sitting under a palm frond shelter looking out at the sparkling white beach and the cerulean blue ocean. A tiny breeze was getting up and it patted playfully at flaxen bangs and chocolate curls as Starsky and Hutch held their two girls close and watched the waves lapping the sand gently. Hutch's girl Ellen had brought her friend, Debra to make up the foursome and now she was busy hanging on Starsky's every word and giggling girlishly at his jokes. Hutch and Ellen sat contentedly watching as the sun go down, their arms around each other, but the brunet, although enjoying Debra's company, couldn't get Melanie and Manny out of his head. Whilst Debra leaned in close and ran her fingers up his neck and through his springy curls, all Starsky could think of was the tiny woman and her huge, thuggish husband. Although he laughed, talked and kissed, his heart was truly not in it and he felt bad for not giving Debra his full attention.

Finally, with the moon high in the sky and the stars casting a twinkling blanket across the heavens the girls yawned and apologised, saying they needed to get home as they had work the next day. They got back into the car and Hutch drove them back to their various homes, driving around to Ridgeway last of all. As he drew up outside he cast a surreptitious look sideways at his partner.

'What's up buddy?' he asked.

'Nuthin. Just hot an' tired I guess.'

'What did you think of Debra? Great body huh? And her um….. assets. Were they real d'ya think or has she had 'em enhanced?'

'Yeah, she as good.'

'Good? She was fuckin' amazing' Hutch said incredulously. 'What is it with you Starsk?'

The brunet grinned sheepishly. 'Too much beer and sun. I'm getting' old and past it. No stamina any more.'

'You? The Brooklyn Stud? Get outa here. We're 32, we're not on zimmer frames yet.'

'Well I think it's the six months I've got on you Pal. When you're 32 and a half, you'll be decrepit too. Meanwhile, I'm gonna shuffle off and have my warm milk and nutmeg and hit the sack.'

Hutch snorted. 'Want me to come tuck you in?'

Starsky slammed the door of the LTD and peered in through the window. 'Just gimme a lie in tomorrow huh? And um….. no Debra before dinner. I have my energy to conserve.'

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

The next day, Starsky drove around to Hutch's as the fingers of the clock swung around to midday. He'd slept poorly, his dreams being of huge men, tiny women and him in the middle of them, trying to hit out at Manny's bloated stomach. He'd woken himself with a rough shout at one point and had snickered to himself when he found he'd pounded his fist into his pillow. Fluffing it, and turning it over so that he could rest his head on the cool underside, he tried to get back to sleep but one question kept rolling round and around in his head. Why would a pretty young girl like Melanie marry an old, fat, balding and older man like Manny. Mel didn't look like a gold digger, and she was obviously in her own way loyal to Manny, but still, there seemed no rhyme nor reason to her relationship.

When the brunet finally did wake up, he had a nagging headache that settled over his left eye and felt more tired than when he'd gone to bed the night before. He dragged himself over to Venice Place and when he and Hutch hit the beach that afternoon, Starsky spread his towel out on the sun warmed sand, rubbed cream into his skin and promptly fell asleep to the soft sounds of the sea.

By five o'clock in the afternoon, the shadows were lengthening and the sun had lost some of its bite. The blond's skin had taken on a healthy blush and Starsky's olive toned body had darkened by a couple of shades. He woke with a stretch, rubbed his fingers through his hair and sat up.

'What time is it?' he asked.

'Dinner time. Want to eat out or go back to yours for pizza?' Hutch replied.

'Pizza sounds good. Can I choose the toppings?'

The blond smiled at Starsky's childish eagerness. 'Sure.'

'With extra anchovies?'

'Is there any other way?'

'Great, c'mon, let's get back to the car huh?'

They packed up their towels, sun screen and got back into their shorts and tee shirts, walking over the hot sand and back up to the board walk. Starsky drove home to Venice Place via the pizza takeaway and they took it home to eat. Legs stretched out on the coffee table, bottles of beer in hand and full of sun, sand and pizza, Hutch sighed contentedly.

'Great day off' he mumbled sleepily.

'You tired Blondie?'

Hutch managed to wedge his eye open. 'Just relaxed. Haven't felt this good in ages, its amazing what a few hours in the sun will do for ya.'

'It is. And speaking of relaxed, I'm gonna head off home. See you at eight tomorrow for another day in the workhouse?'

'Uh huh. Let yourself out, I'm too comfortable to move.'

The brunet got up with a grunt, tossed the empty pizza cartoon into the waste bin and took his car keys from the table by the door. 'Night buddy. See ya.'

Starsky drove back to his house slowly, reliving the day. It had been good to relax for a while. They hadn't had nearly enough down time recently and they were both in need of a vacation. The two days off had been the next best thing. The brunet drew up outside his apartment, got out of the car and locked it before heading up the steps and into the cool living room. Flicking on the light, he took a dink of orange juice from the fridge and took it into the bathroom. He adjusted the temperature of the shower until it was cool and stripped off, stepping under the refreshing spray and standing with his face upturned as the water cooled his heated skin. Blessed with latin colouring, Starsky didn't burn easily, but his skin glowed and felt warm to touch and the water cooled and soothed and by the time he stepped out, he felt calmer, even more relaxed and ready for bed.

As he walked out of the bathroom however, the phone began to ring and without thinking, he picked it up and made his usual greeting.

'Hutch what did ya forget this time?'

There was a muffled sob at the other end and suddenly the brunet's nerves were far from relaxed.

'Who is this?' he asked, holding the phone closer to his ear, his little finger wrapped around the receiver.

'Dave?' A woman's voice let out a cry, the voice pained and obviously terrified.

'Who…. Melanie, is that you honey?'

'Da…Dave….oh G God, Dave' Melanie sobbed into the phone. 'Help……help m me.'

Starsky took a deep breath. The woman was crying so hard she could hardly get out the words and her sobs tore at his heart. 'Mel, calm down honey, c'mon, take a breath huh? What's the matter? What's happened?'

'I ca can't live like thi this' she sobbed, her breath coming in rasping gasps. 'I thought I co could, but I caaaaan't.'

'Has he hit you again? Has Manny hurt you?'

'He was mad…. He fo found the num number. I…. he hurt m me.'

'Where are ya honey? Where are you Mel. I can come and pick you up. Where are ya? Can you tell me? Are you at home?'

'No, I ran……dunno where.'

'Can you see a street sign? Are there stores around?'

There was a second of silence. 'Denver…..Denver and Washington….corner. I'm in a ph phone booth. I….help me' Mel cried uncontrollably down the phone.

'Ok honey. Don't cry Mel, please don't cry. I'm comin' I'll be there in five minutes. Just hang on huh? Hang on till I get there, I'll be right there.'

Starsky put the phone down, dressed in two seconds and headed out of the door. He jammed the mars light onto the roof of his car, started the siren and within seven minutes was turning the corner into Denver. Ahead, he saw on the corner a phone booth and crumpled at the foot of the booth, a huddled figure dressed only in tee shirt and skirt, her feet bare and her face hidden by her hands.

'Hang on honey, I'm here' Starsky muttered as he swerved to a halt besides Melanie.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Starsky drew the car to a shuddering halt, the tyres squealing in protest at the sudden manoeuvre and was out of the door before the car had come to a complete stop. He hunkered down on the ground by the side of the bleeding woman, his hands hovering centimetres above her body, unsure whether he should touch her or not.

From what the brunet could see, Melanie's face was covered in blood, her hands shaking and blood seeping though her fingers as she sobbed deep ragged sobs. She sat leaning against the pole of the telephone booth, her bare feet tucked under her and her body in a tiny ball, as though she were trying to make herself invisible. For a moment the brunet was at a loss as to what to do, but eventually Starsky did the only thing he could think of and scooped her up into his arms.

'Sssh, s'ok, I'm here now. I'm right here, it's gonna be ok' he said softly, rocking her gently. 'Dave's here. I'm gonna take care of you. Where does it hurt honey?'

Slowly Melanie sagged against his body her body relaxing marginally now that she felt safe and protected and he heard a muffled whisper. 'I was s so scared. He hit me. He hit me and he hurt me s so much' she whimpered.

'I know honey, an' I'm gonna make it better for you. You did the right thing, you rang me. I can take care of you now.'

'I didn't know who else to call. I didn't want to get you involved but….'

'Hey, I told you to ring any time didn't I? You did good honey. You did the right thing but we need to get you somewhere safe. Can you move? Can you stand up?'

Melanie nodded. 'I don't know. I guess so' she said.

Starsky got to his feet and wrapped his arm gently around the woman's waist. He helped her up, wincing as she yelped in pain, although in the dark it was difficult to assess her injuries to any great extent. There seemed to be a lot of blood on her head, but the brunet knew from bitter experience that head wounds tended to bleed a lot anyway. Very slowly to accommodate her heavy limp, he helped her round to the passenger side of his car, opened the door and helped her to get in. She sat, small and broken in the front seat as Starsky trotted around to the driver's side and got in.

'We need to get you to the hospital' he said.

Melanie's head snapped up. 'No, please, not the hospital. I'm ok. I just need a Band Aid and an aspirin. I'll be fine. I…. Can you take me somewhere I can get cleaned up?' she asked desperately.

The curly haired cop smiled. A woman after his own heart! Someone else who hated hospitals almost as much as he did. Thoughtfully Starsky nodded. 'Sure. We can go back to mine. You can clean up there and maybe get some sleep. Things will look better in the morning.'

'Are you sure?'

'Course.'

Melanie smiled wanly. 'Thank you. You're a good man Dave' she whispered, her chin sunk almost onto her chest as she fought with her pain and exhaustion. Starsky started the engine and leaned over to fasten the seat belt around the frail body. Melanie flinched as he touched her, and her eyes flashed open, but she smiled sheepishly and blushed slightly as the cop fastened the buckle.

'S'ok' he mumbled. 'Rest, I'll take care of you.'

Quickly, he drove back to Ridgeway. The streets were quiet and the drive took no more than quarter of an hour, although Starsky didn't really want to drive too quickly and risk hurting her if he had to stop or swerve. As he drew up outside his apartment, he stopped the engine and Melanie looked up warily.

'We're here. Wait there an' I can help you outa the car' the brunet said gently. He got out and opened her door and she struggled to get out, holding her arm protectively around her middle. Leaning heavily on Starsky, Melanie managed to make it up the steps and into the house and the cop lowered her onto his sofa as he busied himself with a bowl of hot water, gauze pads, towels and the contents of his first aid box.

In the light of his apartment, Starsky was shocked at the state of the woman. Blood had started to congeal over her right eye, overlaying the gash and bruise from two days ago. There seemed to be a large cut in her hair and taking a pad of gauze, the brunet wetted it and started to dab as gently as he could at the wound. For her part, Melanie remained still and quiet although by the narrowing of her eyes and the hitch in her breath, Starsky could tell that he was hurting her.

'What happened?' he asked again as much to distract her from his ministrations as anything else.

'I was out doing grocery shopping. Manny had got home before me and he was…. well he likes to check out my stuff. He must have looked through the pockets in my skirt – the one I wore the other night. He found your card' she said softly, her eyes rising to look into his.

'And he found my number?'

'Uh huh.'

'But that's an official police card. What the hell did he do this for?' Starsky asked angrily.

'Because he saw the number you'd written on the back of it. He accused me of….'

'What?'

'Of seeing you behind his back.'

'Bastard! That's insane' the brunet spat out. 'And the fall two nights ago?'

'He hit me then too. I was ironing and I burned his shirt.'

Starsky shook his head and dabbed the wound on her head dry. It seemed to have stopped bleeding, but as he looked down, Starsky could see that Melanie's right wrist was bruised and swollen. He lifted her arm and she cried out in pain, jerking it away from him and at the same time doubling over and clutching at her chest.

'What? Where else does it hurt?' Starsky demanded, sitting back on his heels.

'My chest. I think maybe I bruised my ribs' Melanie managed to gasp between pains.

'You want for me to take a look?'

Slowly, the woman nodded and shuffled forwards on the seat, pulling her blouse out of the waistband of her skirt. Starsky raised the material and gasped as he took his first look at her ribs. Melanie's back was a welter of bruises. Some were new and deep, dark blue whilst others were older, yellow tinged and fading. Her ribs were swollen and blackened on her left side and she breathed shallowly and quickly.

'When did this happen?' Starsky asked, trying to keep the anger out of his voice.

'You have to understand, he's not a bad man' Melanie said defensively, trying to pull her blouse down. Starsky held on to it and probed as gently as he could at the blackened skin.

'Oh my God!' the woman screamed. Her body stiffened and the action brought on a bout of coughing. Desperately, Melanie tried to hold onto her ribs to keep them from hurting, but Starsky could see that at least two of them were broken. The ends of the bones grated against each other and a fine sheen of perspiration shone over the girl's forehead as she struggled to catch her breath. A particularly bad cough made her scream again, and this time, the pain, added to the emotional stress caused her eyes to roll back into her head, and Melanie collapsed back against the sofa in a dead faint.

Muttering curses under his breath, Starsky gathered the woman up in his arms. Cuts and bruises he could deal with without too much difficulty, but broken bones needed more care than he could give. Her ribs and wrist needed xrays for sure and by the look of the bruise spreading up her shin from her bare foot, Melanie also had a badly sprained ankle, if not broken.

She was feather light in his arms as Starsky carried her out of his apartment and laid her tenderly on the back seat of his Torino. Making sure she wasn't going to hurt herself any more, he got back behind the wheel and with his light flashing set off as fast as he dared for County General, the nearest hospital to Ridgeway. By the time he got there, Melanie was once more awake, although in a great deal of pain and only semi aware of what was going on around her.

Starsky shot out of the car and grabbed the nearest porter he could find. The man found a gurney and helped the brunet to lay the woman on it and as the porter wheeled the gurney inside, Starsky walked at its side, holding Melanie's hand gently in his own.

Once inside the small curtained cubicle in the ER an older doctor arrived, stethoscope slung around his neck. The badge on his white coat proclaimed him to be Dr Lithgoe. He took one look at the woman, her dishevelled appearance, bare, dirty feet and blood stained clothes and looked sternly at Starsky.

'If you aren't a relative you need to leave' he snapped.

'I'm not leaving her' Starsky snapped back.

'Are you a relative?'

Without thinking, and without warning, the words sprang to his lips, leaving Starsky as stunned as the doctor. 'I'm her husband' he said. 'I'm staying.'

'And how did she come by these injuries?'

Melanie moaned on the gurney, her temperature up and fever loosening her tongue. 'Husband. My husband did it' she whispered.

The doctor looked up incredulously. 'You did this?' he asked.

'What? No….no, you don't understand…' the brunet mumbled.

'I think you should wait outside. We'll be calling the police. And don't go causing any more trouble to my hospital staff.'

'No, you don't understand. I'm not her husband. I don't know why I said that. I just need to stay with her. Please?'

The doctor looked dubious. 'Make your mind up! Is he your husband?' he asked the woman.

Melanie opened her eyes and looked up into Starsky's indigo blues. 'I wish he was' she whispered.

The medic grunted. 'So long as you keep out of the way, you can stay. But we'll still be calling the police anyway. Domestic violence needs to be reported.'

'I am the police. Detective Starsky from the 8th precinct.'

'Uh huh. You're a cop like you were her husband? Just leave it to the professionals huh? The nurse will still call the cops. Now stand aside, I have work to do.'

Starsky could feel the argument biting at his tongue but he kept his counsel realising that more talk meant more delay in treating Melanie. He stood back while a nurse stripped Melanie's blouse and skirt off and got her into a hospital gown. Lithgoe palpated her chest, wrist and ankle gently. But Melanie still stiffened, yelping when the medic's hands probed too deeply and finally the doctor stood back and sighed.

'So far as I can tell, you've broken four ribs, your wrist is most definitely broken and you may well have a fracture in your ankle too. We'll be sending you along to xray to get things checked out properly, but in the mean time, we'll give you something for the pain. Once we've established what's going on, we can get you treated and more comfortable.'

'Will I need to stay in Doctor?' Melanie asked.

'Depends. Do you have someone to look after you at home?'

'She can stay with me' Starsky said quickly. 'She can't go home, so she can stay with me.'

Melanie gazed at him with glazed, pain filled eyes. 'I can't ask you to do that.'

'You didn't ask, I offered. You're not gonna be safer than in a cop's house are you? Besides, I'd like it' he said shyly.

'Are you sure you want to do that?' the Doctor asked, still confused as to the relationship between man and woman.

'I think so, yes' Melanie said with a shadow of a smile. 'Thank you.'


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Starsky paced the small visitors waiting room, wondering just what the hell he was doing and what he'd gotten himself into. He'd never felt this way about a case like this before and his mind tried to turn somersaults as he endeavoured to work out what sort of hold Melanie had over him.

Hutch had been right when he'd said it was just one more incident of domestic violence and ordinarily he would have dealt with it, filed the report and notched up another statistic for the state to deal with later. Police departments were full of complaints from women who were beaten up by their husbands or boyfriends usually after a drunken night out. Sometimes it was a case of six of one and half a dozen of the other. Sometimes the woman was almost as much to blame as the man, although the brunet would never condone violence against a woman. In Starsky's eyes that was as bad as beating kids. He was a self proclaimed softy when it came to women, children and animals and Hutch had often joked about him being such a soft touch.

Not that the blond was at all cold hearted. Just the opposite and both detectives brought a warm and human dimension to their work, but whereas Starsky had the Latin temperament and passion inherited from his European ancestors, Hutch's humanity was more calculated – wanted to think about and plan help rather than plunging right in there.

Which was exactly what Starsky had just done, he admitted to himself ruefully. The brunet had heard the cry for help and had got on his white charger to gallop over to Melanie's aid – or at least he'd got into his red and white Torino and floored the gas. The question was why?

They'd dealt with so many cases like these before and yes, they had always left the brunet feeling powerless, angry and with a sour taste in his mouth. Never, though, had they made him want to enfold the victim in his arms and take her off to his house. For a quarter of an hour now, since they'd taken Melanie to the xray department and then to have her bones set, Starsky had been trying to reason out what was so special about this particular case and this woman.

Manny Monaghan was a bully. That was a given and Starsky hated bullies. Manny Monaghan had also pissed the brunet off when he'd blamed Melanie for everything and had commanded her not to talk to either him or Hutch. But that wasn't the whole story. There was something about the woman, something indefinable, that Starsky found both irresistible and unforgettable. Maybe it was her build. She was tiny, probably no more than 5' tall and 85lbs. Her hair was dark brown and short, although Starsky usually went for girls with long hair and her face was elfin, her eyes shining like enormous nut brown pebbles from under pretty, arched eyebrows. She was pretty in a waif-like way, and she brought out all the protectiveness in him, but that wasn't the total story either.

When he'd seen her in the house that first night, injured and scared as she was, her face tear streaked and her eye bruised, there was fear on her face for sure. But there was something else there too. Hidden away behind her eyes there was a calm assurance and a little defiance which Starsky identified with and admired. This was not a regular victim of a vicious husband. Melanie was not the usual sort of wife who did whatever her husband told her. Yes, she seemed to obey Manny, but not as a servant would. She behaved with quiet dignity, even when Starsky had found her dirty and hurt on the street. There was no self recrimination, no feeling sorry for herself, just a fierce determination to get up and get on with life as best she could.

The question arose why did she stay with Manny and what had she seen in him in the first place? He was probably twice her age, big, fat and boorish, while she was delicate, pretty and would probably have been able to take her pick of any number of men. She was an enigma and one that the brunet hoped he would have the time to unravel, given the chance and so long as he could explain things to Hutch.

Hutch!

Damn, he was gonna have to do some fancy talking if he was going to convince his partner that taking in a complainant (or prospective complainant) was the right thing to do. He could almost hear the blond's voice now. "What the hell do you think you're playin' at buddy? This is a recipe for disaster". Somehow though, it didn't seem like a disaster but rather the right thing to do, for Melanie, and also if he was honest, for Starsky himself. Deny it he might, but deep down, the brunet admitted to himself that he'd already formed an attachment to the girl and the attachment felt as though it may well blossom into something more.

Starsky's thoughts were interrupted by a nurse coming into the room. She was the one who had taken pity of the brunet when he looked so lost after the porters took Melanie up to the other department and Lithgoe had once again grilled Starsky about her injuries. Finally realising he wasn't going to get anywhere with the curly haired man, the doctor had stomped off to find another patient and the nurse, whose name was Ann had led the handsome cop to the waiting area and had rustled up a cup of coffee from somewhere. Now she coughed self consciously and smiled.

'The police are here. They want to see you' she explained.

'Uh? Oh, fine, yeah. Bring 'em in' Starsky said distractedly. He'd almost forgotten his blurted story that he was in fact Melanie's husband. What a fucking stupid thing to say considering all domestic violence incidents had to be reported! The nurse nodded to two men and stood to one side as Barnes and Hadley walked into the small room and stopped suddenly.

'Starsky!' Barnes exclaimed. 'What the fuck?'

The brunet smiled tiredly. 'It's a long story. Come in an' sit down.'

The two uniformed cops did as instructed, looking confused in the extreme. 'The hospital said some flake had brought a badly beaten girl in. Said he was her husband and he'd beaten her.'

'Not quite, but close' the brunet grunted. 'I got a call, picked up Mel Monaghan and brought her here to be treated. She was scared an' they wouldn't let me stay unless I was a relative, so I lied an' told 'em I was her husband.'

'Wow, you must know her pretty well if you'd say that' Hadley said with feeling. 'She must mean a helluva lot to ya.'

'I guess so' Starsky admitted, as much to himself as anyone else. 'So I'm sorry you got the call, but really there aint a lot of use you two bein' here. I've got her husband taped an' we can bring him in later.'

'You want for us to go get him?' Hadley asked seeing the wolfish grin spread across the brunet's face.

'Oh no, No he's all mine boys. I'll get out there later, when I've collected Hutch.'

'Hutch is on his way' Barnes announced.

'What? Why? Who told him?'

'Dobey. Hutch was coming on duty and he read the report from the hospital and recognised the name. Monaghan aint all that common a surname. He radioed in to say he was on his way and for us to try to get a hold of you. We didn't know you'd be here. It's great when we get a twofer.' The cop smiled happily.

'How long ago was that?' Starsky asked with some trepidation. He knew what his partner's reaction was likely to be and had hoped to stall the meeting until he had Melanie safely back at his house.

Barnes looked at his wristwatch and pursed his lips. 'We got the call about half an hour ago. He wasn't far behind us.'

'Who wasn't?' a fourth voice sounded from the door. Starsky looked up into his partner's crystal blue eyes and smiled. 'You.'

Hutch nodded at the twp uniformed cops. 'Thanks guys, we can take it from here' he said, standing back to let the two men out of the room. They both nodded their goodbyes and walked off leaving an uncomfortable silence in the room.

'What happened?' Hutch asked smoothly, although there was a steely edge to the question.

Starsky paced the room. 'It's not like you think' he said defensively.

'And what do I think?'

The brunet sighed. 'Look, I gave her my card with the number on, like we would do with any case. She was in trouble, she used the number and I brought her here. End of story.'

'She didn't call the switchboard, I checked' Hutch said quietly, his eyebrows raised in question.

'What did ya do that for?'

'Don't evade the question buddy. I asked what happened.'

Starsky swung round his eyes blazing. 'An' I told ya.'

'Uh huh. Half a tale. She phoned you at home didn't she?'

'So?'

'So how did she get the number Starsk?'

'What does it matter? She was hurt an' I got her some help.'

It was Hutch's turn to sigh. 'It matters a lot Gordo an' you know it. What're ya playin' at?'

'It's no game' the brunet grunted. 'She's hurt bad.'

'Not what I meant. Starsk, the other night after the call, you were quiet. You went dashin' out of the office when you saw Melanie and then on your day off you just happen to drive 20 miles outa your way to go check on her house. It's a dangerous game you're playin' buddy. I'm tryin' to be a friend and warn you off.'

'Or are you just stickin' your nose in where it aint wanted?' Starsky snapped, a red flush creeping up his neck. He saw the truth behind Hutch's words and sighed deeply. 'I'm sorry Blondie. Yeah, I admit she may have got to me a little, but what was I meant to do? Don't matter how she got my number, she did and she used it an' now she's getting' help.'

'Whose?'

'Uh?'

'I asked whose help she's getting' Hutch pushed.

'The docs and nurses' the curly haired man hedged.

'And?'

'And what?'

Hutch grabbed his partner by the arm as he passed and stopped him pacing. 'And what then? Where's she gonna go then huh?'

Starsky refused to meet the crystal blue eyes boring into his. He'd tried to avoid that question himself, and yet the answer he did keep coming up with was one Hutch would prefer not to hear, of that he was sure. 'Dunno' he said, hedging for time.

'Starsk…..buddy. We've been down this road before – with Sharman? It doesn't work. You can't mix the job up with your feelings. You know that as well as I do. It's dangerous. Manny is a big guy and he is rightfully Melanie's husband an' if that isn't enough to put your thinkin' straight, consider your job. You were lucky last time that no one rumbled you, but you probably wouldn't get away with it a second time.'

'I can't just leave her, she needs help' Starsky protested.

'Yeah, professional help. We started the ball rollin' and now it's up to the courts, or the women's refuge. You can't save 'em all Starsk, although God help us I wish we could.'

Starsky saw the gleam of passion in Hutch's eyes. Deep down, he knew his partner had his best interests at heart, and yet the thought of Melanie, injured and frail, making her way to one of the city's refuges was more than he could contemplate. There was no way that Hutch would understand. The blond was happy with Ellen and they suited each other well enough. Starsky hadn't had a girl for a while, but it wasn't just a need to have female company that was making him feel that way. If it was, there were a few girls at the Pits who he knew would go out with him in a trice. He'd even had a letter from a girl in England pleading for a date when she was next in LA. He wasn't big headed about his good looks, just realistic. But it wasn't a casual relationship he wanted with Mel either. With her, he knew he wanted something more, although he couldn't explain that to his partner.

'Ok fine. I know you're talkin' sense. How's this? You go find Manny and bring him in, I'll wait here for Mel. She has no transport and last I saw she hadn't any shoes either. I'll make sure she gets somewhere safe to spend the night after they've finished with her here. Good enough?'

Hutch's eyes narrowed. It seemed unlike his partner to give in so easily, but there was nothing he could do about that now and he saw the force of Starsky's argument so he shrugged and smiled.' Good enough' he agreed. 'How long are you gonna be?'

'They took her to have a cast put on her arm. She should be back soon. What time is it?'

Hutch looked at his watch. 9:10 why?'

'I lost track of time. I've been here nearly all night. Depending on how long they keep her, I'll get her taken care of and then maybe call in to get the rest of the shift off. Sure you can handle Manny?'

Hutch grinned. 'It'll be my pleasure. See you later partner?'

'Uh huh, catch you later.'

Moments after the blond had departed, Ann, the nurse stuck her head around the door. 'Melanie is back. Do you want to come see her?'

Starsky followed the nurse back and into a side room where Melanie was sat up on the bed. She looked better, the cut on her head having been stitched and her face cleaned up. Bruises still showed, but her eyes had lost the listlessness and she smiled as the brunet walked in and waved the bright white cast on her arm at him.

'It was broken' she explained, 'but my ankle was just sprained. They strapped it up and I have to use a crutch. They said I could go home, but….'

The curly haired cop came to sit on the edge of the bed. Gently he took her uninjured hand in his and smiled at her.

'You can't go back home, he'll only do this again….or worse.'

She looked at him sadly. 'Then where? I have no family here and…. Dave it's better at home than one of those women's shelters. I'll be fine.'

Starsky sighed. 'I know honey, that's why you're gonna come home with me.'


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Hutch walked away from the hospital thoughtfully. He'd seen his partner in the first flushed of love before. With Terri Roberts it had been a wonderful, whirlwind affair that left both Starsky and his girl speechless. Terri had matched the curly haired cop perfectly. She was smart, beautiful, understanding and never crowded in on the lives Hutch and Starsky spent out on the street. There was never any recrimination in her voice if he had to phone to cancel a date because the flake they were staking out had just sent out for pizza, but likewise, she never complained when he arrived on her doorstep unannounced, a bottle of wine under his arm and his trademark lop sided grin on his handsome face.

And then there had been Rosey Malone, a different kettle of fish completely. Again, she was smart and beautiful but also fragile, living under the shadow of her gangster father. An undercover assignment too far was how Hutch came to view it in the months after Rosey disappeared. Some things were too close, too personal to have to deal with in the line of duty, and falling in love with their mark's daughter most definitely fell into that category. The affair left Starsky shattered, seeing Rosey in every blond long haired girl they came across and only time blunted the pangs of pain the brunet had felt at her absence.

Not that Hutch had escaped the clutches of Eros either. Gillian was still a painful page in the diary of his life and the blond could still feel the echo of the blow he'd delivered to his partner's jaw on his fist. Grief, shattering in its intensity had been a visitor to both men in their relatively short lives and it had led them both to build around them a kind of wall, impregnable by all but the most special of women, and even then, both Hutch and Starsky remained guarded, never fully letting down their defences because they knew if they did, they left their women wide open to attack by every turkey walking the streets of Bay City.

Now there was Melanie Monaghan. She was pretty in an ordinary sort of way. Hutch didn't know her well enough to know if she was smart and she was not out of the same mould Starsky's women usually came from. So what was it about her that had the brunet so bent over? And more to the point, what was Starsky doing, playing fast and loose with another man's wife?

To Hutch, the solution was simple. He'd nursemaided his partner through the traumatic months after Terri's death. They'd both sat on the floor in the brunet's kitchen, bottles of beer in hand and Monopoly board set out between them. They'd both opened her gifts and had shed tears and had both dealt with their grief in their own way. When Rosey had gone, only Hutch had been there to pick up the pieces, much as Starsky had helped him with Gillian and later Abby. The one thing the flaxen haired cop knew for sure was that he would move heaven and earth if he could prevent Starsky from making a wrong decision and ending up being hurt again, and that's just how Hutch could see this ending.

Walking to his car, Hutch got in, called himself in as rolling and turned in the direction of 2051 Wilshire, wondering what he was going to find when he got there. He had little to go on as he hadn't even seen the injuries Melanie had received at the hands of her husband, but they must have been serious for Starsky to get her to the hospital. What was he supposed to say or do? Was he supposed to defend Starsky's actions even when he knew himself that they were indefensible? Was he supposed to boldly go in there, lying that he'd seen Melanie and that he was going to arrest Manny for assault? Or should he play it by ear and try to make the best of a bad job. Domestic violence cases were always so messy. They were the bane of a cop's life because there were always two sides to the stories, although it was more often than not the weaker woman who came off worst in the fights that usually followed the arguments.

With a sigh, Hutch pulled up outside the large house. For a moment he paused, getting his head together before he got out and walked up the drive to the front door. It opened before he'd even had time to knock and Manny Monaghan's red bloated face stared at him angrily.

'Oh, you're back. What's the stupid little bitch done now? And where's your partner. I thought your sort always went round in pairs' the big man asked.

'If you're referring to your wife, she's done nothing, it's you I've come to see' Hutch said as evenly as he could.

'What's she said? Told ya I beat up on her, has she? She's a lyin' little viper, I never laid a finger on her. I thought we agreed on that a couple of nights ago'

Hutch balled his hands into fists, fighting to keep his temper under control. 'Can I come in? Or do you want the whole neighbourhood to know what's goin' on?'

'You ain't setting a foot over my doorstep cop. I've done nothin' wrong. What goes on between me and my wife is my concern.'

'Not when it involves the cops and the hospital it isn't. I've just come from County General where Melanie is being treated for broken bones. Now, unless you can prove to me that that was an accident?.....'

Manny's face turned several shades darker red and for a moment it looked as though he would hit out at the flaxen haired cop, although Hutch was ready. The blond watched as Manny's fist balled and he saw the muscles working in the big jaw.

'Just give me a reason, Pal' the blond said softly, his hand reaching for his gun. 'We don't want to do anything stupid do we?'

Manny was a lot of things, but stupid wasn't one of them and slowly he brought down his ham of a fist, the struggle for composure obvious on his face. 'Where's that good looking partner of yours?' he growled.

'Answer the question. Can you prove that Melanie's injuries weren't an accident?' Hutch asked, trying to ignore the question.

'I don't know nothing about any injuries, but I do know what your fancy pants partner's up to. I'm gonna call my lawyer.'

'Let's leave Starsky out of this shall we? You have the right to a phone call down at the…'

'I have a right to a phone call right here. Unless I'm mistaken you don't have an arrest warrant and you aint got nothing to arrest me on. Has she said it was me? Has she told you I hurt her?' Manny drove home his point and Hutch had to admit that although he'd come bowling over to the house on Starsky's instructions, he had nothing on the big man other than what Starsky had told him. Much as it galled the blond to admit, Manny was right, he had nothing on which to arrest him.

Hutch sighed, keeping a hold of his temper admirably. 'I'm not gonna take you in, no, but I'm here to warn you that if we hear of any more injuries to Mrs Monaghan, you'll be dragged down town so fast your boots will leave sparks on the road.'

Manny's eyes blazed angrily. 'An' I'm gonna ask you to pass a warning onto that poodle haired partner of yours. Tell him to stay away from my wife otherwise he's gonna be the one who's in trouble. Got that cop?'

'Is that a threat?' Hutch seethed.

'No' Manny grinned in triumph, 'no threat, it's a promise.'

'Mr Monaghan, keep your fists to yourself and next time, pick on someone your own size and not your wife huh?' the cop snapped, wishing he had more to go on so that he could snap his cuffs round the wrists of the sanctimonious man in front of him and drag him off to the cells. Manny knew he'd won and was now standing with his hands on his hips and a grin on his face

Hutch turned away from the door and walked stiff backed back down to the car at the bottom of the drive. As he got in, his hands shook with rage, although he was unsure who he was the most angry at. Manny Monahan was the type of guy who Hutch loved to hate; big, florid, selfish and a bully, the man seemed to have no redeeming features. But the blond was also seething at his partner. Starsky had gotten himself into a mess like this before when his soft heart had gotten the better of him. When he'd found his childhood friend hooked on snow and living in a slum in the worst part of the city, Hutch had tried to reason with the brunet. Starsky was adamant though, that Sharman should come home with him and in a way, Hutch admired the way the brunet had stuck with the girl through all the stages of her withdrawal.

That time, things had turned out for the best. That time, no one found out that Starsky had been harbouring a material witness, but things could have been so different. Hutch knew from bitter experience that cops couldn't play fast and loose with their emotions. Sometimes the job got to them, yes. That's why they had partners, so that they had someone to share the burdens with, but sometimes partners just weren't enough and sometimes one partner just wouldn't listen to the other.

Sighing deeply and hoping that for once, Starsky would act with his head and not with his heart, Hutch turned his car back towards the city and to the Metro.

Back at the hospital, the brunet's heart, however was working overtime. Melanie had had a cast applied to her wrist, a bandage wrapped tightly around her ankle and four stitches inserted into the wound on her scalp. She'd also been given pain killers for the four ribs that had been broken and now had them strapped up too so that at least she was able to breathe a little more comfortably.

Sitting up in the bed, Melanie's head dropped, her eyes closed as she tried to deal with the powerful pain meds suffusing her body. The doctor had said she could go home only of there was someone there to look after her and for once, Starsky was glad that he didn't have his blond partner by his side. He could hear in his head all the arguments Hutch would put forward against him taking Melanie home with him. She was a victim of a crime; she was not his concern and above all, she was another man's wife and yet still, Starsky couldn't bring himself to deliver the woman to either the women's refuge or back to her brute of a husband. With those two options now dismissed, the brunet did the only other thing he could think of. He packed up the meagre clothing Melanie had been wearing when he picked her up, got her into a wheelchair, collected the medication from the nurse and the instructions for her care, and pushed her out to his waiting car.

'You don't have to do this' Melanie said softly as he tenderly picked her up and placed her on the front seat of the Torino. Her actions belied her words, however and her arms lingered fractionally longer than they should have done around the brunet's neck before letting him go.

'I know I don't have to, but I want to, unless you want to go back home?' Starsky asked, searching her face for the answers.

'I don't want to go back to Manny no. Not just yet at least, but I don't want to get you into any sort of trouble either.'

The curly haired cop grinned. 'Hey, I can get into all kinds of trouble without you helpin' me honey. Just sit back, buckle up an' let me take you home huh? Things will look better after you've had a good sleep.'

Melanie rested her head against the headrest and sighed sleepily. 'Thank you' she whispered and was asleep before Starsky had started the engine.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Starsky carried the woman into his living room and through to the bedroom. She's wrapped her arms around his neck tightly as he'd carried her and now, as he laid her gently down on the bed, she mumbled something softly.

'Huh?' he asked as he helped Melanie lay back and get herself comfortable on the pillows.

'I said thank you' she mumbled, her voice thick and indistinct through the pain meds fuddling her system.

'Not a problem honey. Are you ok? Do you need anything? I mean, can I um….'

Melanie opened her eyes and smiled. 'I don't suppose you have a nighty?' she said softly, plucking at the borrowed hospital gown.

'Not the thing I usually wear to bed honey, no. But maybe….' The brunet got up off the bed and rummaged in his drawers for a moment. He paused, considered and then took out his oldest, softest denim shirt. Rolling the sleeves of the butter-soft fabric back, he walked towards the bed. 'It aint exactly Chanel, but it's better than that rag' he said. 'Wanna try getting changed?'

'Um…..it's difficult with the cast. Dave, you've done so much and I hate to ask but….can you help?'

Starsky nodded and sat at the back of the woman as he clumsily unfastened the ties on the rear of the gown. His hands felt to be all thumbs and he couldn't stop the slight shake in them as the hospital gown fell forwards revealing Melanie's bare back decorated with its bruises and scars. The tiny woman clutched the fabric of the gown to her chest with one hand as she inserted the casted arm into the sleeve of the shirt. Starsky held the other sleeve out for her and she managed to thread her uninjured arm into it, pulling the two halves of the shirt together at the front so that she could slip the gown out from underneath it. She deposited the thin material onto the ground with a sigh.

'Better?' Starsky asked.

Melanie snuggled into the soft denim and breathed in the slight fragrance of sandalwood soap that always clung to the brunet's clothing. 'Much. Thank you.'

'Hey, don't thank me. I never made it look that good' the cop replied with a smile. Melanie blushed and looked away.

'What? What did I say?' he asked turning her face towards him gently.

'The right thing. You always seem to be able to say the right thing. It makes me feel special.'

'You are special honey, and don't let anyone tell you any different. Now, what else can I get you? Water? Tea? Coffee?'

The woman leaned back on the pillows. 'A cup of tea would be lovely, but I could get it if you like. You don't need to wait on me hand and foot.'

'I won't make a habit of it' Starsky grinned. 'One cup of tea comin' right up ma'am.' He got up and padded out into the living room, busying himself in his kitchen, mindlessly boiling the water, putting the bag into the cup, and then he stopped for a moment, memories of Sharman coming back to him. What the hell was he doing? What was he getting himself into, and why?

Starsky leaned with his back against the counter trying to analyse what it was about this tiny woman that had him so caught up. There was something about her, something indefinable that made him want to take a hold of her and wrap her up in cotton wool to protect her, not only from her overbearing husband but also from the world.

_Dangerous, Davey. You're playing a dangerous game here. She's married for Gods sake! She's married and you don't know shit about her, or her background or her husband's background come to that. All you see is a bird with an injured wing and you want to make it all better. For fucks sake grow up! This isn't why you're a cop, is it? You're meant to catch the bad guys and move on, not take in every little waif and stray from the street. Get her the tea, give her a bed for the night and then get her the fuck out of here!_

Starsky nodded to himself at the stiff, self serving pep talk. That was his plan. He'd give Melanie a bed for the night because she was hurting and he couldn't just take her to the refuge like that. She hadn't even got the right clothes for heaven's sake! She needed rest, just for tonight and in the morning, he'd follow Hutch's advice and take her to the nearest refuge and they could look after her.

Fine.

He could do that.

Not a problem.

Starsky is in control!

The brunet took the cup of tea, hardened his heart and walked back into the bedroom determined to tell Melanie of his plan for the morning. She'd already told him she didn't expect him to take her in, so it would be easy........ wouldn't it?

He paused at the door and his heart gave a little flip in his chest.

Melanie had snuggled down on the pillows and was now led on her side, her face half buried in the clean white linen. Her eyes were closed and there was a tiny smile on her face in sleep, her hand up by her face looking for all the world as though she was going to suck her thumb.

Quietly, so as not to disturb her, Starsky put the tea down on the bedside table, switched off the lamp and tiptoed out of the door, pulling it half closed behind him. With a sigh, he eased off his sneakers, pulled off his socks and put them in the linen basket. Unbuttoning his shirt, he stripped that off too and led down on his sofa, left arm behind his head as he closed his eyes.

An hour later, Starsky must have drifted off into a light sleep because he was awoken by a scream from his bedroom. Galvanised into action, the brunet raced into the darkened room just in time to see Melanie sitting up in the bed, the sheets pulled up to her chin as her eyes stared wildly around her. Rushing over to the bed, the brunet sat down and took a hold of the woman, enfolding her into an embrace as her sobs shook their bodies and her tears flowed wetly down the front of Starsky's chest. He rocked her slowly, crooning nothing words into her hair and stroking his fingers through the short brown locks and very slowly her cries subsided and she relaxed against his warm body.

'What's the matter honey?' he asked when eventually she pulled away from him and wiped at her tears with her fingers.

'I had a nightmare. Manny. He was coming for me and I couldn't stop him. You were there and you tried to get him to stop, but he hurt you and I couldn't do anything to save you.'

'It's ok, it was just a bad dream Hon. Nothing else. You're fine. You're safe here with me, no one's gonna get ya here. Can I get you a drink of water? Or do you want something stronger, I've got some brandy somewhere.'

Melanie shook her head. 'No, water's fine…. And maybe another pill? My ankle is real sore.'

The cop got a glass of water and shook out a pill from the bottle. He handed them to her and watched as she swallowed it down. 'Better?'

'A little. You probably think I'm a real chicken. I'm not usually this wet. I guess it all just got to me.'

'It's fine' the brunet said, patting Mel on her hand. 'We all get nightmares from time to time.'

'Even you?'

Starsky snorted. If she only knew the half of it! 'Yeah, I get nightmares. Real doozies.'

'So what do you do to make them go away?' Mel asked.

The brunet snickered to himself. Phone Hutch, that's what he always did, especially in the early days after Gunther's men had shot him down. For some irrational reason, even though Hutch had dealt with James Gunther and the goon was now safely behind bars, Starsky had had nightmares that Hutch was the next to be shot. During his long period of recovery, he'd woken up drenched in sweat regularly, panting and gasping at the recurrent dream and only the sound of Hutch's sleepy tones down the phone line had kept him from going nuts.

Would he share that most personal of information with Melanie? Not right now, but maybe later. _Oh my God Davey! What happened to "she can stay the night but then she goes to the refuge tomorrow". Sounds like you're planning for her to move in!_

'Friends are always the first stop' Starsky said cryptically. 'And right now, you've got me. Wanna talk?'

'No, I'm tired. I can't remember feeling so tired, but I'm scared the nightmare will come back.'

'It won't. My Aunt Rosey used to tell me the dream fairies only had one of each dream. Once it was used up, it was gone for good.'

The woman smiled. 'And you believed her?'

'Course! Just like I believed that I once saw a Bigfoot when I went out in the desert with Uncle Al and like I believed in Santa Claus. If a belief makes life easier, go with it. And apart from that, my Aunt Rosey is a big woman, you wouldn't want to argue with her' the brunet grinned. 'C'mon, get down and covered up an' try an' get some sleep huh?'

Shyly Melanie smiled. 'Will you stay? For just a little while till I'm asleep?'

Starsky nodded. 'Course I will honey, move over, let me squidge on the edge of the bed here.'

The cop managed to get himself led down beside the small woman. With his hand wrapped around her waist and her head snuggled against his bare chest, he could feel the rise and fall of her ribs as her breathing quietened and she fell back to sleep. It felt odd to the brunet to be in that position. It wasn't as though this was some girl he'd picked up at the Pits. He hardly knew her and yet at the same time, he felt so easy with her that they could have been lifelong friends.

As Melanie slept, Starsky rested his chin on the top of her head, fighting to keep his own eyes open. Melanie's hair still smelled of the anaesthetic of the hospital. Her body was small and almost insubstantial next to his, but she was warm and vital and as he relaxed against her, she moved in towards him, one hand flung over his middle while the other brushed against the centre of his body. He stiffened, unsure whether to risk waking her by removing her hand, or just to grit his teeth and endure the cravings that her touch brought. Her hand seemed to burn through the material of his jeans, he could feel her heat bathing his core and his cock leapt to attention yearning for more of the delightful touch.

Eventually, he could stand it no longer and with great care, he managed to pull his arm out from under her. Melanie moaned in her sleep, and her eyes flickered open for a moment, but then the pain meds drew here back under their influence again and she drifted back to sleep.

Starsky padded softly into the bathroom. No, no, no, no, no, this shouldn't be happening. He was a cop, she was married. He shouldn't have these feelings, and yet… Looking down at the display of need at the centre of his body, he folded his left hand around. With his right hand braced against the bathroom wall, the brunet took care of business, his eyes closed almost in pain as he released into the pan. Fatalistically, and knowing that his good intentions of taking Melanie to a women's refuge the next day were now a pipe dream, Starsky plodded back to the living room and lay down with a sigh on the sofa to wait for the morning and to plan how he was going to explain all this to Hutch.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

_Authors note....._

_Dear Starsky......sorry to leave you like this, but um......well you're comfy and you've "taken care of business" and I um......well I have to go on holiday for two weeks. It's one of those "significant" birthdays and I want to celebrate with my husband! Ssshhhh, he doesn't know that you and I have this thing going. So um......sweet dreams, stay comfy on that sofa and I'll be back on March 23rd so you can continue your illicit affair with the delectable Melanie!_


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8 **

Starsky woke slowly. He stretched luxuriously, his hands above his head as his back arched and then he rolled onto his side to plump up his pillow, missed the mark and fell with a thud onto the floor. Cursing, and unmashing his nose from the rug he got to his knees next to the sofa he belatedly remembered sleeping on the previous night. For a brief moment he rubbed at his nose and wondered why he'd slept in his own living room and then he remembered – Melanie.

The brunet looked at his watch. 7:15. Hutch would be coming round for him at 7:45 and the blond was nothing if not punctual. Hutch would also not be sympathetic to finding the injured woman in Starsky's bed and so, heaving a sigh, the brunet rose, padding first to the bedroom door to look in on the sleeping woman and then into his bathroom. The brunet snickered at himself for feeling the need to hide his actions from his partner, but if he was honest, he'd never been able to handle that look that Hutch could give him – the "you are so screwed" look that made him feel like a little boy in grade school again. It was as though he was back in front of the Rabbi in class while he told everyone that little David Starsky had once again failed to learn the Torah Haftarah for his Bar Mitzvah and he could still feel the snickers of the other 13 year old boys.

Putting his feelings of guilt to one side, Starsky started the shower. The hot water eased out the kinks in his back and neck, but did nothing for the unease in his head and while he shaved, indigo blue eyes stared back at him, mocking the curly haired man for being such a soft touch. Once again he asked himself what the hell he was doing and once again his mind came up blank. He wanted to help Mel, that was all he could think about and all thoughts of taking her to live somewhere else fled from his mind the second she'd snuggled into his body in bed the previous evening.

Tip toeing back into his bedroom, Starsky rummaged briefly in his wardrobe and fished out a clean pair of jeans, underpants, socks and a tee shirt without waking Melanie. Returning to the living room, he dressed quickly, took a couple of mouthfuls of orange juice and was waiting outside on his steps when Hutch's old brown car appeared round the corner of Ridgeway. The blond drew up and wound down the window.

'Who are you and what have you done with my partner?' he asked with a grin.

Starsky ignored the sarcasm and got into the car. 'Funny! Can't a man be wide awake once in a while?'

'Most men can, yeah, but you aren't most men. The last time I saw you voluntarily up so early was that day that reporter woman followed us around. You've not got a mystery woman secreted about your person do ya?'

'NO!.....no, what makes ya say that?' Starsky said a little too loudly. He grinned sheepishly to cover up his mistake and Hutch looked at him curiously.

'So what happened at the hospital then? How's Melanie? Is she settled? Did she find somewhere to bed down?' the blond asked, turning the car back towards the city.

'Oh, the usual. She had a broken wrist, broken ribs and a sprained ankle. They gave her pain meds so she's a bit more comfortable.'

'Yeah? Have you spoken to her?'

'Huh?'

'You said she is a bit more comfortable. I asked if you've spoken to her' Hutch said.

'Oh, yeah, I've spoken to her' Starsky answered truthfully. 'What about Manny?'

'Slippery as an eel. I didn't have a warrant so I couldn't do nothin'. He was curious about you though.'

'Me? Why?' Starsky asked casually.

'Kept asking where you were.'

'And what did you tell him?'

'Nothing. I told him he should keep out of our hair otherwise we'd have him down to the Metro faster than he could squeal for his lawyer.'

'Bet he loved that' Starsky grinned.

'He's in the know Starsk. He's one of those guys who knows which strings to pull. He could be dangerous if we don't do things by the book' Hutch emphasized the last couple of words and studied his partner.

'I know, but we can be careful with the best if 'em.'

Hutch scowled briefly. 'I mean it Starsk. I know you want to help Melanie, but if we went around getting personally involved with every beaten wife in the city we'd never get anythin' else done.'

'I get ya. Message received loud and clear' Starsky grunted.

'Received yeah, but is it understood Gordo?'

Starsky sighed. 'Yes, it's understood. Are we gonna talk about Monaghan all day? Like ya say, there are plenty more flakes we need to get our hands on.'

Hutch threw his hands up in defeat. He knew something was going on, but for the moment, he decided to let it ride in the hopes that for once his curly haired partner would see sense.

For the rest of the day, the two men did the ordinary, everyday things that most cops do when the crime scene is quiet. They finished paperwork at the squad room, they ducked out for coffee at the diner across the way, they diverted the number from the local Dunkin Donuts into Dobey's phone and sat back to listen for the explosion and when five o'clock finally rolled around, both men took their jackets off the backs of their chairs and headed for home.

'Fancy a beer at the Pits?' Hutch asked, wiping his hand over the back of his neck. It had been another hot one and he felt sticky and in need of something long and cool to drink.

Surprisingly, Starsky shook his head. 'No, if it's ok with you I'm gonna head off home.'

'You ok buddy? I mean, you're not comin' down with somethin' are ya?'

'No, I'm fine. Just hot an' tired. I guess it's the night at the hospital finally catchin' up with me. I need my beauty sleep.'

'Uh huh? You look a little green round the gills there partner.'

'Oh t'riffic! Just what I need to make me feel better. I'm fine, I just don't want to go back to the Pits.'

Hutch shrugged. 'Fine, I'll drop you at yours and see you tomorrow.'

'Um….I'll drive tomorrow' Starsky said, almost as an afterthought.

'Oh no. I spent the whole of last week in the striped tomato. It's your turn to ride.'

'But this heap squeaks. You've got a squeak and it's cuttin' right through me' the brunet argued.

'I don't hear it.'

'You have a squeak that's drivin' me nuts and you don't hear it? That's settled. I'll be round for you at 8:00 tomorrow in MY car that don't squeak like a mouse on speed.'

Knowing he'd been beaten, the blond nodded. 'Whatever. Are you gonna see if you can be early two days in a row?'

They pulled up outside Starsky's apartment and the brunet got out and leaned in through the window. 'I'll see what I can do. Tell Hug I said hi. See ya tomorrow' he said, banging on the roof of the car before Hutch drove off. Starsky watched him go, the tyres kicking up a cloud of dust from the dry highway before he turned and made his way up the steps and opened his front door.

As he walked in, Starsky was taken aback by the sight of his dinner table, laid with his best cutlery, two wine glasses and an old wine bottle with a candle in the neck, it's warm, amber light sending flickering shadows round the curtained room. From the kitchen a delicious aroma of cooking emanated and Mel's voice was singing softly. She looked up as he walked in and smiled.

'What's all this about?' the brunet asked, waving his hand at the table and the candle.

'Don't you like it?' Melanie asked.

'I love it, it's just not what I'm used to comin' home to.'

'I wanted to say thank you – for looking after me and letting me stay here' the woman said softly. 'It was the only way I could think of. I hope you don't mind.'

'Mind? Honey, the way to my heart is via my stomach…. Well most of the time' Starsky's eyes twinkled dangerously.

'I thought as much. Take your jacket off and sit down. Dinner's almost ready.'

The brunet did as he was told, hanging his jacket up tidily behind the door and sitting on the sofa. He hissed as tight muscles in his neck and back proclaimed he'd been more tense during the day than he'd cared to admit. It had been a tough job dodging Hutch's questions without raising too much suspicion in his partner's head. Even now, Starsky wasn't convinced that Hutch didn't suspect something, but for tonight, he'd try to relax. Maybe tomorrow, he could think with his head and not with his heart.

Starsky hitched his shoulders and rotated his neck and a moment later he felt small fingers digging into the knots at the base of his skull. He groaned softly as Melanie massaged his neck and shoulders, he hands skillful and surprisingly strong as she eased away the tensions of the day.

'Where did ya learn to do that?' he asked appreciatively when she'd finally stopped.

'It's surprising what I learned while I was with Manny' she said, her face losing its small smile at the mention of her husband's name. Starsky reached up and smoothed his thumb down her cheek.

'Thanks.'

'For what?' she asked.

'For the neck rub, for the meal…..for being someone to come home to.'

She stared into his deep indigo eyes and for a moment the world stood still and only the two of them existed. Melanie's soulful brown eyes locked with Starsky's and she drowned in the intensity of his gaze, finally pulling herself away from him with a struggle.

'You haven't tasted my cooking yet' she said with a slight tremor in her voice, rushing to the kitchen to hide the shake in her hands.

'If it tastes as good as it smells, I'm never letting you go' he said, only half jokingly.

Mel served the meal while Starsky poured out the wine. They talked about anything and everything and the brunet was amazed at how easy he found it to talk to her. Conversation flowed between them and it soon became apparent that Melanie was smart as well as pretty and a good cook.

As the meal ended, the candle having burned down, Starsky looked at her over the flickering flame.

'Can I ask you somethin'?'

'Of course' she replied.

'Well, I was kinda wondering. You're pretty and smart and….'

'What am I doing married to Manny?' Mel finished for him. He nodded and Mel shrugged her shoulders.

'It's a long story. Manny Monaghan owns a lot of property on the east side. He invested wisely and made his money either buying up old stuff, refurbishing it and selling it on for a profit, or buying up housing and renting it out. My Mom and Dad were his tenants in one of the properties. He used to come round for the rents, or send someone round for them and then my Dad lost his job. Mom was sick and he couldn't pay the medical. She died a couple of years ago and Dad died soon after. I think it broke his heart not to have Mom there.'

'That's tough' Starsky said softly, his hand reaching out to cover Melanie's.

'It happens' she said. 'We deal and we move on. Manny had always made it known that he liked me. He's much older than me – I guess he's old enough to be my Father. Anyway, because Dad had no money, they were in debt to Manny for thousands of dollars. Manny came around to see me after Dad's funeral and said I could get the money from somewhere, and he didn't care where, or he would wipe the slate clean if I married him.'

'Bastard!' the brunet couldn't keep the expletive from his lips. Mel looked up sharply.

'He isn't all bad, and at first I didn't know what to do. I mean, I was young, only 20. I had a decent job as a secretary, but it didn't pay near enough to give Manny his money back. I was devastated. I'd lost both my parents in the space of a few months and I guess I wasn't thinking straight. I told him I'd marry him and he organized everything. Within two weeks we'd been married and he'd moved me in with him.'

'That's crazy, he was just taking advantage of you honey.'

She smiled. 'I know that now, but I was vulnerable and he seemed ok. For the first few months I even thought I may come to love him and then….'

'Then what? He started to be violent? He hurt you?'

Melanie lowered her eyes, not wanting to meet the intensity of the indigo blues. 'Not badly at first. He treated me more like a little girl. He punished me if I did something wrong. Little things, like he'd keep me without money so that I had to ask him for every penny. Then it got that he wanted to know where I was going every time I went out. If I met a friend he'd want to know about them and he'd question me for hours. One day I met up with a guy I'd known in college. It was nothing, just a chance meeting, but that night was the first night he really hurt me. After that things went downhill so that eventually he locked me in the house when he went out. I'm not allowed friends, or telephone calls. I guess I'm kind of a prisoner in his house.'

'But you don't have to be. You can press charges honey. You can tell the courts like you told me and he'll go to jail' Starsky urged.

'And then what?' she asked. 'I have no money, no belongings. Even the clothes I wear belong to Manny. Without him I have nowhere to go, no place to live, no way to get out. I'm trapped.'

'I can help' Starsky said before he'd realised what he was getting himself into.

'You already have. I can't ask you to do more.'

'Who's asking. I'm offering. Stay here, just till you can get yourself sorted out. If you won't press charges against him, you can at least get yourself a life away from him.'

'What about you?' Melanie asked, hope in her eyes.

'Don't worry about me' Starsky said.

'And Hutch?'

The brunet's face fell. 'With Hutch it's difficult, but leave Blondie to me huh? It'll be fine.'


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9 - and a warning for sexual content. if this offends skip to chapter 10.**

At the end of the meal Starsky pushed himself away from the table with a contented sigh.

'I could get used to having home cooked meals. It beats cold pizza and a beer.'

'Do you want to take a shower while I do the dishes?' Melanie asked.

'Hey, I'm a "new man". I'm not afraid to do the dishes.'

'No, but you've had a busy day at work and I've had nothing to do. I've never seen a man's house so tidy! There again, I haven't seen many men's houses.'

Starsky grinned. 'Two years in the Army will do that to a man. My drill sergeant was the meanest guy in the world, it kinda sticks.'

Mel grinned and winked her eye. 'Hmm, you were a soldier boy. I like a man in uniform.'

Starsky gave a small hiccoughing yelp. 'If you're sure you don't mind, I will go an' have a shower' he said. 'A cold one' he added under his breath. Heading into the bathroom, the brunet closed the door and leaned on it, eyes closed as he heaved a deep sigh. _She likes a soldier boy. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, what the hell are ya doin' soldier boy? OK get a grip. Take a shower, it'll be cool._ His feelings for Mel took him by surprise. It was their intensity that struck him most and that he was so unprepared for. When he was in the room with Melanie it was like an electric charge zapped through the air between them and that electric charge ran straight to his groin. Annoyingly, Starsky kinda liked it.

With a moan, the brunet stood under the shower and turned the temperature down as low as he could stand. The icy needles of water pummeled his skin and cascaded over his curly locks as he soaped himself roughly, only stopping the flow when he was shivering and his fingers had turned white. He toweled himself dry briskly, got dressed in a comfortable pair of sweat pants and an old tee shirt and walked out into his living room again in time to see Mel hobbling over to the sofa. The woman had a pillow and blanket under her arm and she laid them down as she saw him.

'What're ya doin'?' he asked. 'I can do that, you should be resting.'

'I was tired so I thought I could sleep out here tonight' Melanie said, tucking the blanket down the side of the sofa.

'Don't you like the bed?'

'Of course I do. It's great, but you have to go to work tomorrow, you need your rest.'

'Uh uh, no way. You should have the bed because you're hurt an' I wouldn't be much of a gentleman if I left you out here.'

'Are you a gentleman, Dave Starsky?' Mel asked with a twinkle in her eyes.

'Most of the time' he growled. 'Now, are you gonna take the bed, or do I have to force you?'

'Are you going to try?'

'Could be' he said and crossed the room in one stride. Starsky picked Mel up in his arms. She was so light and delicate it was like holding a child and with no effort at all, he made his way into the bedroom.

'Unfair' she giggled. 'That's so unfair.'

'Who said I played fair? I gotta win some time, it does my ego good' the brunet grinned. 'I'm gonna have to put you down soon though. I mean you're so damned heavy, you're gonna put my back out and them I'll be no use to anyone.'

'I didn't tell you to pick me up. Put me down. Put me down now, you'll hurt yourself' Mel laughed.

Starsky padded towards the bed, tripping on the rag rug by the side of his bed. With a yelp, he lunged towards the bed and together they fell forward, Starsky landing on top of Melanie on the mattress. She yelped, panting heavily, Starsky's arms on either side of her. Indigo eyes looked down at her and without thinking the brunet leaned down and claimed her mouth with his own. For a hundred years time stood still as he breathed in her sweet breath until Mel responded to him, her lips warm and sweet against his and her body soft beneath him. The kiss was tender, gentle and when they finally broke apart, the brunet searched her face.

'I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that. We shouldn't, we shouldn't' he panted. 'It's wrong, you're a married woman and your hurt.'

Mel looked up at him. 'I know' she whispered agreeing reluctantly with the cop, but her eyes held a different message. The beautiful, soulful brown windows to her soul told him that she wanted him more than she wanted anything else in life.

Desperately, Starsky knelt up, kissed her on the forehead and got off the bed. His legs shook like a teenagers and he could hardly trust himself to speak, so great was the effort to tear himself away from her, but giving her shelter was one thing. Making love to her was like taking advantage of her and he couldn't bring himself to do that.

'Sleep well' he said gruffly. 'If you need anything, you know where I am.' Starsky headed for the door and had his hand on the handle when he heard Mel call to him from the bed.

'Dave….'

'Yeah?'

Mel looked at him for a second, but it was dark in the room and he couldn't read her face. 'Nothing' she said softly and turned over on her side.

Starsky walked away out of the bedroom and put the light off. Wearily he lay down on the sofa in the dark. He pulled the blanket up around him while the mearest hint of Mel's perfume wafted around him. For a while the brunet lay with his eyes open, staring at the ceiling. His heart still hammered in his chest as though he'd just run a marathon instead of walking from his bedroom. Again and again he asked himself, what was he doing? He had such a powerful attraction to the woman and yet fundamentally he knew it was wrong to make any sort of advance to her.

Instinctively, the brunet's hand went out to the telephone, intent on calling the one man who he knew would be able to save Starsky from himself. Hutch would talk sense to him. He'd have to bite the bullet and tell the blond that Mel was with him, but at least Hutch would stop him from making a terrible mistake. As his hand took a hold of the receiver though, he stopped.

From behind the closed door of the bedroom, Starsky heard a noise. Quietly, he got up off the sofa and stood by the door, listening to Mel sobbing in the bedroom. The sound tore at his heart, all thoughts of sense and saving himself from doing anything crazy fleeing from his mind as he opened the door and walked into the bedroom again. His eyes adjusted to the dark and he could see the sparkle of light shining from the tears on Melanie's face.

'Honey? What's the matter?' he asked softly.

'Hold me, please, just hold me? I just need someone to hold me, I'm s confused' Mel wept, melting the final vestiges of Starsky's resolve. The brunet moved to the bed and lay down besides the woman, wrapping his arms around her as she snuggled once again against his chest. With his left hand he gently wiped at the tears on her cheeks with his thumb. He held the girl in his arms until her sobbing had abated. He felt her hot tears run down the front of his chest, her body shaking against his as she clutched at his hands with hers. He said nothing, not knowing the words that would give her comfort. Instead, he leaned into her, soothing her with his body, and kissing her hair softly.

For an age, the two stayed that way, the seconds on the bedside clock ticking away the hurt and the loneliness until finally Melanie emerged from the cave created by the blankets and Starsky's body. She looked up into his caring eyes and smiled wanly.

'I'm sorry' she whispered. 'I never meant to break down.'

'Hey, it's ok honey' the brunet said quietly. 'Everyone needs to let it out sometimes. Do you want to talk about it?'

'Not really. It seems too petty now. It's just….being here with you feels so right somehow, and I know it shouldn't. I know I should be a dutiful wife and go back to Manny, but he has never, ever made me feel the way you do.'

'And how's that?'

Melanie lowered her eyes. 'Special' she said. 'You make me feel like I'm the only woman in the world. You look at me and I can see care in your eyes, care and….. affection?'

'So what's wrong with that?'

'Everything. I'm so confused. I'm a married woman and yet I have no feelings for the man I'm married to and every feeling for you. That's so wrong, and yet, it feels so right.'

Starsky nodded. 'To me too honey.'

'But you agree it's wrong?' she said softly.

'Uh huh, I know we shouldn't, but….' Starsky's smouldering indigo eyes glowed in the dim light and very slowly he bent his head and kissed her on the lips.

For the briefest second, there was hesitation but then it was as though a dam of emotions had finally broken and the floodwaters of need and want and love flowed out, drowning both the brunet and the woman with their intensity. Starsky felt Mel's hand move against his chest, her small fingers stroking at his overheated skin, carding through the hairs on his chest and then moving lower.

The brunet lost himself in that first, passionate kiss, allowing his own hands to start exploring her body. The shirt she wore as a nighty – his shirt – buttoned down the front and deftly he popped the fasteners, pushing the soft fabric off of her shoulders and feeling the loop of bandages around her ribs thrusting her small breasts out towards him. She sighed as his hand brushed over her nipple and he broke away from Mel's lips to dip his head and claim the rose coloured nub with his tongue.

Melanie arched her back beneath him, pushing herself forward for more of his featherlight touches as her own hand worked at the waistband of his sweat pants. Starsky felt her hand dip beneath the fabric and hissed as he felt her tiny fingers wrap around him, sending a jolt of electricity through his entire body. Any thoughts of holding back were now banished from his mind as raw emotion took over.

Together the two lovers spent time exploring each other's bodies, their hands stroking, kneading, pulling. Mel kissed delicately at Starsky's chest, hesitantly taking his own brown nipple between her teeth. It surprised her when the brunet moaned and closed his eyes, his body shaking with the delicious torment she was bestowing on him and softly, her tongue licked at the hard nub of flesh.

'Oh woman….don't….don't stop' he whispered into her hair.

Disappearing further down, Melanie kissed down in a line from the hard brown nipples along the line of dark curly hair that formed an arrow to the centre of the brunet's body. She took a hold of the drawstring waist of his pants, pulled the knot loose and pushed the fabric down so that she could access his core.

For a moment, she gazed at Starsky's manhood, proud and jutting from it's nest of dark curls. Her tongue darted out and the cop shuddered against her at that first delicate contact with his satin smooth flesh. His hands on her shoulders, he pulled her up to him and kissed her again on her lips, his tongue seeking entrance to her mouth and claiming it as his own.

They broke apart and Starsky gazed at her intently. 'Are you sure?' he asked. 'Are you really sure you want to do this?'

Melanie nodded. 'More than anything' she moaned, pulling away to go back to her target. Her tongue flicked over his sensitive tip again and this time, Starsky did not pull away. This time, he waited, his breath held as she took her first tentative taste of him, her lips warm and wet on his shaft, her breath hot against his skin. And then he felt himself enveloped in a hot wet cave from which he never wanted to escape. Alternating kisses and licks, Mel's talented lips worked the man up into a frenzy until he was panting hard to stop himself from thrusting hard into her mouth. She sucked him in whole and he groaned aloud, his fingers woven into her hair.

'Mel, please…..honey' he managed to gasp.

She snaked her way up his body and kissed his lips again and he tasted his essence on her breath. Deftly he rolled her onto her back, his own hands and mouth now exploring her body as she trembled beneath him. With all his control, he asked her once more. 'Are you sure?' and Mel, her eyes closed, nodded.

'Please, I want you so much' she whispered. 'I think I love you.'

It was all the brunet needed and as Mel prepared herself for him, he knelt between her knees, stroking her pale skin with his olive toned hands. Finally, he dipped two fingers gently inside her, feeling her warm and wet and ready for him, She mewed as his hands moved, thrusting her hips up to meet him and knowing he wouldn't be able to hold off for much longer, he lowered himself, replacing fingers with his rod of flesh.

He was a big man and had always been careful with his lovers. Now, with this tiny woman he worried that he would hurt her too much, but as he pushed gently inside, she rose to accommodate him, pulling him further in and wrapping her legs around his waist.

Lost now in the heat of his emotion, he pulled out and thrust again, deeper and faster, amazed that she could take so much of him. Mel's hands scrabbled at his back, her nails raking furrows down his spine and she clung onto him, moaning now in unison with the brunet.

'I love you' she whispered again into his ear, inflaming him further.

'Oh God, Mel…. Woman…..say my name…say it' he hissed as he felt his body solidify into marble within her.

'Daaaaave' she moaned one last time, her own body at the extreme of its endurance.

Their climax was earth shattering in its intensity. At the end of it they clung to each other, like the survivors of a shipwreck, entwined in each other's arms long after the last ripples of emotion had run their course. Neither wanted the moment to end, neither wanted to face the reality of a new dawn and the prospects of what must surely follow. For that one night, both lay, entwined in each other's bodies, satiated and happy.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

The next morning, Starsky awoke slowly, happily and with his arms still wrapped around Melanie, who slumbered on, a small smile on her face. For a while the brunet was happy just to lie and watch the woman breathing, her long, dark lashes, with their upward sweep like smoky smudges against her pale cheeks. She looked small, childlike and immensely vulnerable as she lay there, and for a moment, Starsky had a brief twinge of regret. Had he taken advantage of her? Had he forced her into doing something that she would later regret? And then her soft moans and the memory of her body against his flooded his consciousness and he realised that last night had been something they had both wanted and needed.

Eventually, the curly haired man looked at his bedside clock. He grunted. There was just enough time for him to grab a shower, get dressed and get himself round to Hutch's house to collect him. Starsky managed to pull his arm from beneath Mel's body without waking her. He kissed her hair tenderly and got out of bed, making his way to the bathroom where he showered and shaved and got dressed.

Grabbing a mouthful of toast, he took his holster, gun and shield, jammed his cuffs into his back pocket and closed the front door softly behind him. Walking down to the car, however, in the cold light of day, more recriminations started to lurch into his head. What was he going to say to Hutch? In the past he'd tried to hide things from the blond, but he'd never been particularly successful. Working so closely with Hutch for the past ten or so years, they had both become so accustomed to each other, so attuned to each other's body language that they could read each other like a book.

Hutch was no prude of course. Starsky knew that ordinarily, his partner would be so pleased that Starsky had found a woman he was happy with and who loved him unconditionally. Never since Terri had he felt quite so at home with a girl. Melanie was all the things he wanted in a woman. She was pretty, smart, astute, self-possessed and so in tune with him and his body that she seemed to be an extension of the cop himself.

A perfect woman in every way but one, but that one was a real showstopper. She was the subject of an investigation and she was married. With a sigh, Starsky started the car and drove off in the direction of Venice Place. Mentally he prepared himself to try to keep the secret from his buddy. Evasion was the key, evasion of questions and misdirection. _Treat it as an undercover assignment Davey, you're good at undercover. You can do this. But do I want to? Do I really want to deceive Hutch? That's the thing._

Starsky admitted to himself that lying to his partner went against the grain. He hated keeping things from Hutch at the best of times, but keeping Mel's presence from the blond was like an out and out lie and his stomach flipped at the prospect. Honesty was the cornerstone of he and Hutch's relationship. Neither could effectively watch the other's back if they weren't absolutely honest with each other. Scrubbing his fingers through his springy curls, the brunet tried to get his thoughts in order as he drew up outside Hutch's house. The blond was ready and they hit the streets as Hutch took the mic. and pressed the button.

'This is zebra three. It's 7:58. Log us in as out and about.' He said and replaced it on the cradle. 'Sleep well?' he asked as Starsky pulled away from the sidewalk.

'Huh? What's that supposed t'mean?'

'You went home last night and said you were tired. I just wondered if you slept well.'

'Oh, right. Um, yeah, fine. You?'

'Uh huh. Me and Ellen went to the cinema. We saw that Star Wars film and then we went back to mine.'

'Good film?'

'It was ok, yeah. They were in a line around the block to get in. You should go see it. Debra wants to go.'

'Maybe later' Starsky said vaguely.

'What's up partner? Don't you like her?'

Starsky grinned. 'With assets that size, what's not to like? She's fine, just not my type.'

'Aww come on buddy. When did you ever pass up tits and legs?'

'I guess I'm getting' old' the brunet grinned.

Throughout the morning they worked the streets. They were looking for Mickey, Starsky's snitch who they thought might have some news on a new shipment of dope that was rumoured to be coming into the port within the next week. The little man was elusive and by mid afternoon, both men were hot, thirsty and singularly unimpressed with life. Finally at about 5:15, they clocked off and Starsky turned the Torino in the direction of home.

'Are you comin' for a drink at the Pits tonight?' Hutch asked. 'There's a cool beer with your name on it waiting on the bar.'

Starsky's stomach did a little somersault. What excuse could he use tonight? 'I don't think so buddy. All this heat an' the sun….I didn't get enough to drink today. I think I'm getting' a migraine. Maybe I should just go home an' take my meds an' lie down.'

Hutch's face creased in concern. He'd always watched out for his partner, but since Gunther's attack, he'd stepped up his care. 'Do you need me to come back to yours? Will you be ok?'

The brunet snickered to himself. Hutch's "mother hen" routine was always simmering away in the background. 'No, I'm fine. I just need to get somewhere cool an' dark.'

'You sure?'

Starsky hated lying to his partner, especially about his health. 'I'm ok. It's nuthin. Don't fuss Blondie. I know where you are if I need ya.'

Hutch shrugged his shoulders. 'OK. Take care. Drink plenty when you get in. You look tired. I could….'

Starsky smiled. 'Hutch, just go, huh? I'm fine, honest. Nuthin a lie down won't cure. See you tomorrow?'

'Maybe I should drive tomorrow' the blond ventured. 'Maybe the drivin's….'

'Hey, Blondie. Stop it. I'm fine. It's just a headache. I'll be round for you at 8:00. Don't fuss.' The smaller man waved through the window, turned his car for home feeling every inch the rat for lying to Hutch and making him worry unnecessarily and drove away.

As he got in, Mel was already in the kitchen and as he walked up behind her and put his arms round her waist, kissing her neck, she turned to him and flung her arms around him. He realised she was shaking.

'What's the matter honey?' he asked, 'Are you ok? Are you sick?'

Mel shook her head. 'No, I'm fine. It's….there was a phone call today. I never thought…… I answered the phone without thinking. No-one answered at the other end, the line just went dead, but…..'

'But what?'

'Dave, I think it could have been Manny. I think maybe he rang the number you left on the card and now he knows where I am.'

The cop kissed her hair gently. 'We can deal with that. You don't know for sure that it was him. Just don't answer the phone any more, keep the doors locked. I'm only on the end of the telephone of you need me. You'll be fine. He'd be crazy if he came here makin' trouble and somehow I don't put him down as the crazy type'

Mel smiled wanly. 'It's not me I'm worried about, it's you. If Manny thinks I'm here with you…… I don't want you to get hurt.'

Starsky held her tight. 'It's ok honey. I'm a big boy. I can look after myself. And apart from that, I don't think he'd be stupid enough to do anything like that. We'll be fine.'

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

Each day for the next week was about the same. Each morning Starsky would carefully extricate himself from Mel's arms, drive around to pick up his partner, spend the day dodging questions and make up some excuse about why he couldn't come out that night. By the end of six days, Hutch was getting more than a little suspicious and Starsky was fast running out of excuses. On the evening of that sixth day, Hutch was sick to death of the stress lines around Starsky's eyes and decided that something radical had to be done.

'Starsk, you haven't been yourself for almost a week buddy. I'm worried for ya. Whatever's goin' on, you need to chill.'

'I'm chilled' Starsky said. 'There's nuthin wrong.'

'Uh uh. Not buyin'. If you won't tell me what it is, I've arranged a little diversion for us to take your mind off of it. I'll be round to pick you up tonight at 8:00.'

'Hutch, I said I was fine. You don't need to do this, I don't need my mind takin' off anythin'.

'Well it's gonna be, so get your best pair of crummy blue jeans on, we're out on the town tonight.'

The brunet sighed. 'Where?'

'I've arranged with Ellen. She's bringing Debra….. remember Debra – tits and legs? So we'll start off at the Pits at 8:00 and take it from there and I'm not takin' "no" for an answer. Apparently Debra's done nothin' but talk about you since she met ya last time. God knows, the girl must have her taste in her mouth coz I don't know what she sees in you, but you hit the mark buddy.'

Knowing there was no way out, Starsky sighed. 'Yeah, great. A night out on the town. But um…..tell you what. I'll meet you there at 8:00 huh? I needed to um…..well I have some stuff to do first' he finished vaguely.

'Stuff? You're not gonna back out of this are you?' Hutch asked, looking curiously at his partner

'No! I said I'd be there at 8:00 and I will be.'

'OK, I'll get the drinks in?' the blond agreed, getting out of the Torino at his house. 'See you tonight buddy.'

'Yeah, see you tonight' the brunet grunted as he drove away. Life was getting complicated. He'd managed to keep Hutch at bay for almost a week, but he knew he was pushing his luck further each day and sooner or later something would give. Maybe if he went along with the blond's wishes tonight, Hutch would give him some breathing space for a little while longer until he could find the right time to tell him that he and Mel had fallen in love.

Getting home, Starsky explained to Mel that he had to work again and he would probably be back late that night. The woman was understanding and when Starsky was washed, dressed and ready, she kissed him on the cheek and told him to be careful.

'Stay inside and lock the doors' he said. 'I have a key. Don't answer the phone and I'll be back by midnight.'

'Don't worry' Mel smiled. 'I'll be fine. I love you.'

Starsky took her face in his hands. 'I love you too honey' he said and kissed her deeply. 'Now, lock the door huh?' he closed it behind him and heard the dutiful click of the lock before he trotted down the steps to his car.

The Pits was dark and smoky when he arrived. It was Friday – disco night and the heavy bass of the record deck were already beating out a rhythm as the brunet pushed open the back door of the bar and stepped into the hot room. Disco lights ripped around the ceiling, sending rainbow colours dancing off the mirrors and there was a steady him of conversation above the loud music. Friday night was always a popular night and Starsky looked around, his eyes becoming accustomed to the dim lighting until he saw Hutch wave from a booth over the far side of the room. Carefully, Starsky got a beer from the bar and threaded his way through the swaying figures on the dance floor to the waiting trio. He smiled at Hutch and the two girls and they shifted round to give him room to sit down.

'You're late' Hutch yelled over the music. 'Debra thought you'd stood her up.'

'Nah, traffic was bad. An accident on the freeway. It was stacked up an' I got caught in it' Starsky lied. He was amazed how easily the lies came from his lips these last few days. Covering up his tracks seemed to be a way of life now, but not one to which he wished to become too accustomed.

Debra smiled at him and shifted a little closer, her arm close to Starsky's body as though she wanted the cop to put his own arm around her. The brunet ignored her advances, but smiled at her anyway. She smiled back.

'Do you want to dance?' she asked.

'Sure.' The curly haired cop led her onto the dance floor and they bopped and shimmied. Bruce Springsteen belted out "Born in the USA" as the crowd on the floor yelled out the lyrics on the chorus and waved their hands in the air and Starsky danced next to Debra as she playfully bumped him with her hip. But as the mood changed and Paul Young started "Everytime you Go Away" and Debra moved in closer for a slow dance, Starsky backed away.

'Need a drink honey' he said and led her off the dance floor and back to the booth. Debra gave him an odd look and sat around the other side of the table, pouting and watching Hutch and Ellen smooching around the dance floor as Starsky stared into his beer.

Throughout the next couple of numbers, the two sat out, watching and barely saying a word. It wasn't that Starsky aimed to be rude, but more that he had no intention of leading the woman on. Debra might have fallen for him, but Starsky was a one woman man, and right now that woman was waiting for him back at home. By song number 4, which was the theme song to a new TV show called Miami Vice, Debra was sitting with her back to the brunet cop, openly ignoring him and half way through the number, an unknown guy came over to her.

'Are you on your own?' the man asked.

'I feel like it' Debra said with feeling, not looking at her supposed date.

'Wanna dance?' the guy asked.

'Do I?' she said with feeling and followed him onto the disco floor where the couple soon became lost in the seething crowd of dancers.

Eventually, Hutch came back to the booth, panting and smiling. He took a deep chug of his beer and looked around. 'Where's Debra?' he asked.

'Dunno' Starsky answered non-committally.

'What?'

'I didn't want to dance so she…..' the brunet's explanation was interrupted by Ellen storming over to the booth. She pulled Hutch towards her and hissed something animatedly into his ear, then pulled away and headed off across the room. Hutch scowled.

'Ellen says Debra is going home with someone else. She says you ignored her.'

'She was comin' on strong and I didn't want to disillusion her' the brunet said matter of factly.

'Starsky! You said you liked her. What the fuck are you playin' at?'

'No, Blondie. You said I liked her. She's fine. She's a great girl, I'm just not interested right now.'

'So you thought you'd be rude and ignore her?'

'No, she was the one that was rude. She went off with Mr Muscles over there. Its fine, no sweat.'

'What the fuck is goin' on with you partner?'

'Nuthin. You were the one who wanted to drag me out tonight. I'm here aren't I? What more d'ya want?'

Hutch shrugged his shoulders angrily. 'I haven't a fuckin' clue what's goin' on in your head Starsk, and right now, I don't wanna know. I'm leavin'. You can sit there in solitary state all night if ya want, or you can come with us an' try to make it up to Debra. The choice is yours.'

Starsky glared defiantly. He hated making Hutch mad, but he also hated the fact that his partner had backed him into a corner. 'I'll stay' he said softly and took another drink.

'Fine. See you tomorrow' Hutch grunted, turned and with Ellen and Debra in tow, he left the Pits.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Starsky sat for a while longer, watching the couples dancing and swirling his beer around his glass and then with a deep sigh, he got up and made his way to the bar.

'Gimme another beer Hug' he shouted over the music.

'The blond one has gone without ya man. What's up?' the barman asked, putting another drink down on the bar top.

'He and I didn't see eye to eye over a girl' Starsky grunted.

'You both want the same one?' the black man asked, visions of Kira floating into his head.

'Uh uh. He wants me to see one and I don't want to.'

Huggy's eyebrows shot up. 'You mean the lean mean datin' machine don't want to see a girl? Are you sick Starsky?'

The brunet snickered. 'Don't you start! Why is it I refuse a girl a date and suddenly I'm either sick, or vergin' on gay? Can't a guy just be by himself for a while?'

'He sure can. Most guys can be by themselves a lot. But you, my man, have a reputation to uphold. What happened to "one a night Dave"?'

'He died and went to heaven and I took his place. I just mean the girl Hutch had lined up for me was fine. She was cute and had the right bits in the right places, but she didn't do nuthin for me.'

'You're holdin' out on us aren't ya?'

Starsky looked up sharply. 'Huh?'

'You've got a hot chick stashed away somewhere an' you aint tellin' Huggy said conspiratorially.

For a moment, Starsky didn't know whether the barman was more perceptive than even the brunet had given him credit for, or he was just playing. He decided on the latter and played along.

'Just one? Hug, I got a whole harem of 'em back at chez Starsky. They're waiting to peel me a grape and gimme a massage right now.'

Huggy gave a knowing look and shrugged his bony shoulders. 'In that case you should keep your strength up huh? Take another beer. Ya gonna stay till closing time? We can go upstairs later.'

'Another time. I should be getting' back, it's work tomorrow an' Hutch is pissed at me enough already. If I'm late, he's gonna bust a blood vessel.' The brunet knocked back the beer and headed for the door with a backwards wave at his friend. He walked out of the bar and got into his car and drove away just as another car drove down the alleyway behind him, paused and then set up to follow the Torino, keeping well back.

Starsky drove quietly through the almost deserted streets. His mind was back at home with the small woman probably waiting in bed for him. He craved the feel of her head on his shoulder and her sweet body pressed up against him and yet he hated the fact that once again he'd lied to Hutch, or of not lied, had at least been not entirely open with the blond. It hurt, and it took the edge of the almost total happiness he knew he could have with Melanie.

So consumed with his thoughts was he that Starsky didn't see the Pontiac trailing along 50 yards behind him. it wasn't until he got to a dark stretch of road that had no lights that he saw the headlights in his rear view mirror. Even then, he didn't realise that he was being followed. The brunet drove slowly and easily. No need to rush, no need for any fancy driving tonight – just a man coming back from a night on the town. He swung a right and crossed the light controlled intersection just as the car behind turned the corner. It was only when the traffic controls turned to red and the Pontiac sped up and ran the red light that Starsky became suspicious.

He sat up a little straighter in the seat, took a firmer hold of his steering wheel and pushed the gas pedal harder, easing the big V8 engine faster with one eye on the car behind. It too sped up, matching him mile for mile. Starsky sighed, his gut feeling being that one of the punks he and Hutch had nailed had found him and wanted a piece of him. Looking for somewhere out in the open, where he could see them coming, Starsky tried to head off up the ramp to the freeway, but with an amazing turn of speed, the Pontiac sped up, overtook him and swerved left so that the brunet had to wrench the wheel quickly to the side to avoid a collision.

Cursing openly now, Starsky floored the gas, the Pontiac now in front of him. Plunging down the hill, each time the cop tried to turn off the road, the Pontiac was there, in front of him ushering him forward, coercing him into going the way they wanted, rather than the way Starsky wanted to go. Now a second car joined in the chase, this time behind the Torino and Starsky was sandwiched between the two in a high speed game of tag as the three cars careered through the darkened streets of the suburbs.

Out towards the docks they plunged in their headlong chase, Starsky trying every trick he'd ever learned to try to get free of the two cars, but whoever was driving them knew as much about driving as the curly haired cop did and try as Starsky might, there was no avoiding the Pontiac and the Chevy at the back.

Eventually, the two cars guided the Torino onto the docks, their speed still not slackening as they hurtled along a deserted back road. Tall, burned out and tumble down buildings loomed on either side of the dirt track like ominous, ghoulish watchmen as Starsky's throat dried and the sweat of fear started to trickle down his spine. The Pontiac was slowing now and automatically, the brunet reached under his right arm for his gun. His left hand came up empty – who the hell would wear a gun on a night out?

The cars drew to a halt, carefully penning the Torino in so that Starsky couldn't suddenly drive away and for a moment, the brunet watched in his read view mirror as the door to the Chevy opened and a large, black man got out. Ahead, the driver of the Pontiac, an equally large Puerto Rican was also emerging and the two converged on the red car.

Needing to feel he had room to manoeuvre and never one to cower away from a fight, Starsky slid open the door of his car and got out, leaving the door open and keeping his back to the protective red painted metal. Warily he watched the two men approach, but didn't recognise either of them.

'Nice place you've got here' the brunet said, barely a waver in his voice.

Neither man spoke, but now they were within 5 yards of the cop and he waited like a coiled spring for one of them to make a move. 'Nice as its been to see the sights fellas I really should be getting' back home' Starsky tried again.

'Home to someone else's wife?' the black man asked quietly.

So that was it. Manny wasn't crazy enough to confront Starsky himself, but he wasn't above sending others to deliver a message and the brunet was convinced it wouldn't be a nice little handwritten note asking him politely to back off.

'Home to home……nuthin more.'

'We know she's there. You should keep your dick to yourself cop.'

'Says who? Manny Monaghan? He's too chicken to tell me himself, so he send his heavies?' Starsky retorted, his temper now ignited and his sense flying away with the gentle night breeze.

'Boss don't like you messin' with his wife. he sent us to teach you a lesson in manners.'

The brunet looked from one to the other. 'The pair of you look like you wouldn't know manners if the jumped up an' bit you on the ass. Go back and tell Monaghan to go to hell huh?'

The black man looked at his friend 'Now that's just rude' he grunted as he took a final step towards the cop.

Starsky crouched, ready, but the two guys were taller and heavier than he was. As Black managed to get a punch in, the brunet ducked low and shoulder charged him, knocking the wind out his chest with an audible "oowff". Puerto Rican came in from behind and Starsky swirled round, his arms windmilling as he landed a punch on the big man's jaw, his knuckles crunching together painfully with the shock of the connection. Starsky barely had chance to recover when Black came back at him with another punch, this time to the cop's stomach, a solid blow that doubled Starsky over, strings of silver saliva beading towards the ground as he wheezed his way past the pain. A rabbit punch to the back of the neck sent him sprawling onto the floor, the taste of dirt and grit in his mouth and then a heavy boot connected with his side.

'Learned any manners yet cop?' the Puerto Rican growled

'Fuck it' Starsky heard himself grunt. The cop curled himself into a ball as another boot connected. He rolled slowly onto his back and then onto his other side, his hands up to ward off further blows, but as quickly as they'd started, they stopped again. It took Starsky a few moments to realise that the men had ceased their punishment. With his eyes closed against the pain, he hadn't realised that suddenly the two men had melted away into the night and it wasn't until he heard the twin roar of the car's engines as the drove off into the dark that he realised he was once more alone.

With a groan, the brunet sat up, his hand round his chest as he fought to pull in a breath. Gingerly, he wiped the back of his hand over his mouth, cursing as it came away slick with blood. He wiped it down the side of his jeans and painfully scrabbled to his feet, leaning heavily against the side of the car until the world stopped spinning. His left wrist was swelling and he had pains in his left ankle and in his chest, but he guessed that nothing was broken and with care, he managed to open the Torino's door and get himself into the driver's seat.

Taking a few moments for his heart to stop beating quite so wildly, Starsky started the car's engine, hissing at the pressure on his wrist as he turned the steering wheel and he drove back, out of the docks and onto the better lit roads. He kept a sharp lookout in his mirror for any rogue cars, not quite believing that the two goons would give up so quickly and yet the more he thought about it, the more Starsky realised that Manny might be pissed, but he wasn't stupid. Killing, or seriously injuring a cop would buy him ten to fifteen. This was purely a warning. What Manny Monaghan didn't know was that the more someone pushed Starsky, the harder the brunet would push back.

The drive back to Ridgeway was not the most comfortable the cop had every experienced, and by the time he pulled up outside his house, his head was aching as though it would fall from his shoulders and his wrist was turning blue and had swollen to twice its normal size.

Getting out of the car, he limped up his steps, hoping that maybe Mel would be in bed and wouldn't need to see him till he'd had time to clean himself up. It was a forlorn hope, however, and as he opened the door, the woman looked up from the sofa, a smile on her face that immediately faded as she took in the sight before her.

'Oh my God! What happened?' she asked, getting up to rush towards him.

'It's fine. Looks worse than it is. I just need to sit down an' get cleaned up. Don't fuss.'

Mel guided the cop to the sofa and then went in search of water, towel and the first aid box. She gathered her stuff and came back to kneel in front of Starsky who looked up wearily. Gently she dabbed at the split on his lip. He hissed and backed away.

'Who did this?' Mel asked, washing out the flannel and dabbing more of the blood away.

'Some fans. It's nuthin honey' Starsky said quietly.

'Fans? You mean Manny. Did he do this?'

'No, not Manny' the brunet answered truthfully.

'No? Then who?'

'I don't know, I never saw 'em before.'

'We should call the police.'

Starsky snorted. 'I am the police.'

'Well do something. I mean, call it in or whatever you do. They need to be found. They might do this to someone else.'

He shook his head. 'No, they won't.'

Mel looked at him curiously. 'How can you be so sure? Unless…..they were Manny's men weren't they?'

Starsky turned the full force of his indigo eyes on her. 'It was a warning, nuthin more. I dealt with it and now it's fine. I'll make sure it don't happen again.'

'What am I gonna do with you?' Mel asked, kissing the cop on his forehead. He snickered.

'That'll do for starters.'

The woman continued with her ministrations. She bound up Starsky's wrist and then his ankle which was also turning a pretty shade of blue. She taped his knuckles, put ointment on the cuts across his face and handed him two aspirin.

'Do you want a drink?' she asked.

'No, I'm fine. I just need to sleep.' With difficulty, Starsky got himself up from the sofa and limped heavily into the bedroom, easing himself down onto the bed.

'Are you sure nothing is broken? I mean, I still think you should get yourself checked out' Mel said.

The indigo eyes were already sliding closed as Starsky forced himself to reply. 'M'good. Believe me, I've had worse. Just need sleep. Be good t'morrow' he managed to breathe before exhaustion took him away to dreamland.

Melanie stood and watched the sleeping man for a while. His body twitched in sleep and once or twice he cried out. Towards midnight, a nightmare shook him awake and a flush of red crossed his cheeks as a temperature started to flare from his injuries. The woman became increasingly worried as the night wore on and finally took the law into her own hands. When Starsky next woke, thirsty and slightly feverish, he took the glass of water from her with a shaky hand.

'Guess I hurt more than I thought' he said shyly. 'M'sorry honey.'

Mel smiled at him. 'It's ok. You need help. I um….I telephoned Hutch, he's on his way.'

Starsky's eyes flew wide in shock. 'Hutch?' he managed to gasp. 'Oh shit!'


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Hutch cursed long and hard as he put down the telephone. A phone ringing in the middle of the night was never good news. It usually meant that someone he knew was sick, or had had an accident, and there was no one prone to accidents more than his partner. As he had reached for the receiver, visions of earlier times; Starsky hanging out of his bed, the phone still tucked under his ear after Bellamy had got to him floated into his head. Now, the vision was replaced by anger, vying with concern.

The blond had known something was going on with Starsky. He'd felt the rift between them before the end of that first day. The brunet was never good at hiding his feelings unless he was undercover and Hutch was used to reading the body language after years of practice. Starsky was hiding something from him, and now he knew what it was.

Melanie Monaghan's voice had sounded clear and a little shaken over the phone. She hadn't said much – only that Starsky had been in an accident and was hurt and that she could do with some help. Would Hutch come over? The question was rhetorical of course, Hutch would never leave his partner knowing he was hurt.

Gently, the blond shuffled out of bed without disturbing Ellen. He got dressed without putting on the lights and silently got his keys and gun and let himself out of the front door, locking it behind him. He got into the car, turned on the ignition and drove over to Ridgeway, the way he'd driven thousands of times before as though on autopilot.

Hutch's mind was a whirl. Melanie Monaghan at Starsky's house. So, that's what the brunet had been hiding, as if Hutch didn't know! He'd had his suspicions all the way along, but had hoped he'd been wrong. Maybe another day and he would have asked Starsky outright. Now he didn't need to, he needed only to harness his anger, ensure the smaller man was ok, and then let his buddy have it with both barrels.

Hutch pulled up outside Starsky's apartment. The light was on in the living room and as the blond climbed the steps up to the front door, it opened and Melanie smiled shyly at him.

'Thank you for coming' she said. 'I didn't know what else to do. He won't go to the hospital.'

'Hospital? Is it so bad?' Hutch asked, his anger giving way to concern.

'I don't know, he's seems very good at hiding how hurt he is.'

The blond snickered. 'You noticed? Is he in the bedroom?'

Melanie nodded and as the big Nordic cop walked past, she caught his arm, stopping him. 'When I called you, you seemed……surprised.'

'Surprised…..shocked. Yeah.'

'Didn't Dave tell you I was here?' the woman asked.

'No, he seemed to leave out that snippet. He never said a word. Are you ok?'

Mel nodded. 'I'm fine, or at least I will be when Dave gets checked out.'

'Let me go see him, then we'll talk.' Hutch pushed open the bedroom door just as fever bright indigo eyes looked up. Starsky almost seemed to cower away from the blond, edging his way back in the bed as Hutch came to sit on the mattress edge.

'So? What the hell happened to you?' Hutch asked in measured tones.

'I can explain' Starsky started, heaving himself up in the bed. He winced and yelped at the pressure on his bandaged left wrist and Hutch's face softened.

'Save it. Tell me what happened huh? Are you hurt bad? Anythin' broken?'

'Only my pride' Starsky replied ruefully. 'I got a few bruises, but nuthin I haven't had before.'

'Who did it, and what exactly did they do?'

The brunet rested his curly head back on the pillow. 'I was driving back from the Pits. It was quiet and I suddenly realised I was bein' followed. Pretty soon the turkey was joined by his friend and they kinda cornered me.'

'Who?'

'Never saw 'em before, but they um……they mentioned Manny. He sent 'em to warn me off.'

Hutch's eyebrows V'd. 'Warn you off huh?' He took a hold of Starsky's wrist and pressed gently on the swollen part of it.

'Hey….. that hurts!'

'Shame it wasn't your head' the flaxen haired cop grunted, waggling the blue and purple fingers to check for breakages.

'Well thanks!'

'I mean it Starsk. What the hell do you think you're playin' at? She's married. She's a witness and you're playin' fast and loose with your career buddy.'

'She was hurt and she had nowhere to go' the brunet said defensively.

'So, you take her to the refuge.'

'NO! No. Hutch I….You don't understand. It aint as simple as you make out. I love her. I never meant for it to happen but it did. I can't let her go.'

'Fuck Starsk! You love her? What kind of love buddy? I mean……you loved the guinea pig! You love your Torino. It's in your nature to love anythin' and everythin'. It doesn't mean you have to take in every waif and stray in the city. Consider, for fucks sake. Think about this. You don't love her….'

'You have no idea what I love! I'm tellin' you that this time it's for real. She means as much to me as….as Terri. More'n Rosey ever did. She's special an' we love each other. There aint no rhyme or reason to it, it just happened.'

Hutch got up and started to pace the bedroom. 'You're feverish. You have no fuckin' idea what you're sayin' buddy. She is a married woman, I can't make it clearer than that. She. Aint. Free. And Manny has every right to try an' get her back.'

'She's a human bein', not some possession' Starsky shouted back, his face red now with anger as well as temperature. 'You know how he treated her? You know how they met? He bribed her. When she couldn't pay her parent's back rent, he said the debt would be off if she married him. What was she meant to do huh? She was 18 years old. He's 55. What kinda life is that for a girl?'

'So you think you can do better? Good old Dave Starsky rides along on his white charger and sweeps the damsel in distress up into his arms. This aint a fairytale Starsk, and you aint a knight in shining armour. You're a cop and….'

'Course I'm a cop. I know that!'

Hutch rounded on his partner. 'Well start actin' like one' he yelled, his own usually golden face now also red and angry.

'Back of Hutch. Back off and shut up. You've had your say. I hear ya. Now either start acting like my friend an' my partner or get out. Why can't you just be happy for us huh?' Starsky looked at the blankets, his voice suddenly quiet. 'Just be happy for us.'

'I wish I could Gordo. I really wish I could. But this aint Sharman. This aint Terri. Terri was free to be your girl, Mel isn't and there's no getting' away from the fact.' Hutch came back to sit on the bed, concerned at the red flush on his partner's cheeks and the fever bright eyes. He sighed. 'All I'm askin' is that you consider this seriously. Just don't rush headlong into something you know you can't control.'

'And you can control love?' Starsky asked softly, his hands reaching up to cradle his aching head.

'No, I guess not. But you're a grown man. You can think seriously about this. You can stop yourself from making one huge mistake' Hutch said gently, the fire in his voice quenched by the lost, hopeless look in his partner's eyes.

'I think it's too late for that. Don't be mad at me Hutch. That's why I didn't tell ya. I knew you'd be like this an' I just wanted some time to….. I dunno……to be with Mel.'

'Oh Starsk! I'm mad at ya coz I care, mushbrain. I've seen you hurt so many times before an' it hurts me as much as it hurts you.'

Starsky smiled sadly. 'You know, Sweet Alice once told me you can't love unless you're prepared to hurt. She told me that we have to allow ourselves to be open to it, otherwise life aint worth livin'.'

'Yeah. She's a wise woman, but I don't think she ever meant for you to get mixed up with someone who wasn't free to love you back.'

'But she does. Melanie loves me as much as I love her. She's in a loveless marriage. She's no more'n a servant. How can you allow her to live like that?'

Hutch threw his hands up. 'Fine. So you love each other, but for Gods sake put a hold on it. Let her get a divorce if she wants one, but don't wreck your life and your career over her. After that, you can do what the hell you want.'

'I want her now. And she wants me.'

'And what happens when Manny sends his goons round again huh? Looks to me like you got off lightly Starsk. Next time….'

'Next time, I'll be careful.'

The blond shook his head. 'Next time, you could be dead.'

'Don't over dramatise' Starsky muttered yawning.

The blond sighed, knowing he'd get no further tonight. Starsky was nothing if not stubborn and if Hutch was to push now, his partner would go rushing headlong into what Hutch thought of as a huge mistake. He held up his hand.

'You tired?'

'Uh huh.'

'Do you need to go get our wrist and ankle checked over?'

'No, I can tell they aren't broken, just bloody sore.'

'Can I get you anything?' Hutch asked, stretching and stifling his own yawn.

'No, I'm good but you look all in.'

'Comes of chasin' after you in the middle of the night buddy. I never get used to it.'

Starsky shifted over in the bed and patted the mattress softly. 'There's room if you wanna lie down.'

The blond cop looked at his watch. It read 4:15. It was really too late to drive back to his own place and get any quality sleep and the warmth of Starsky's bedroom was seductive. With a grin, he kicked his boots off and lay down on top of the blankets on his side.

'Gee, a real gentleman. You took your shoes off first' a sleepy voice behind him muttered.

'Shuddup Starsk. Go to sleep huh? You've got to think up a good excuse for Dobey in a few hours.'

Within 15 minutes, there was quiet in the room interrupted only by the gentle sounds of the two men fast asleep on the bed. Softly, Melanie opened the door, a shaft of muted warm light slicing into the dark from the living room. It highlighted blond bangs and chocolate curls and the woman smiled sadly to herself as she saw her man curled on his side, one arm flung carelessly over Hutch's waist. Both men looked peaceful, almost youthful and with a small sigh, she closed the door behind her and set to with her preparations.

Three hours later, Hutch awoke stiffly and rolled himself into sitting position on the bed. He looked over his shoulder at Starsky who was still sleeping peacefully although in the early morning light, the scratches and cuts across his face showed livid and red.

Stretching, Hutch got off the bed and padded into the living room. He put on the kettle for coffee, rummaged in his partners cupboards for something vaguely edible to eat and was just about to head back into the bedroom when he saw a slip of paper on the table by the door. He took it, and opened the folded sheet, reading it with a sinking heart as he walked into the bedroom. Gently he shook Starsky awake.

'Shit, is it mornin' already?' the brunet mumbled.

'Starsk, there's something you should see' Hutch said softly.

'Huh?' Indigo eyes stared at him blearily.

'It's um…. Starsk it's Mel. She…. Here' the blond muttered, holding out the paper for his buddy to read.

With a hiss, Starsky sat up in bed and took the folded sheet, squinting as he read it.

My dearest Dave.

I can't forgive my husband for what he has done to you.

You were so kind to me, you don't deserve this.

I can't see you hurt again. No relationship is worth that.

I've gone back to Manny. I don't want to, but I can't bear the thought of your hurting.

Don't come for me.

Don't try to stop me.

I love you more than I can possibly say

Your Mel.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Mel closed the door behind her and walked softly down the steps from the brunet's apartment. She could hardly see where she was putting her feet for the tears blurring her sight but she knew it was the right thing to do. When Starsky had come home injured, she'd known instinctively that her husband had been the culprit. Manny was mean spirited and had no scruples. It would never have crossed his mind to think that Mel had wanted to leave him because she wanted a better life. To Mr Monaghan, "to have and to hold" meant that he did the having and the holding while his wife was nothing other than another possession to him.

Mel's heart had plummeted when she'd seen the injuries across Starsky's body. She'd been so happy while she'd been living at Ridgeway. For the first time since her parents had died, she felt loved, cosseted almost. The cop had a way of making her feel special the minute she walked into the room. But was that enough to keep her there? Was it enough to jeopardise the brunet's health or maybe even his life? Melanie was no martyr, but in all conscience, she knew she would be unable to rest easy in the folds of Starsky's arms knowing that because of her he could be hurt again.

So once Hutch had arrived and she'd heard the voices in the room die down from shouts, to conversation to silence, she got her few things together, wrote a swift but heartfelt note and let herself out of the house. She walked disconsolately up to the top of the road, flagged down a cab and gave him the Division street address. As she sat in the back of the car, watching the passing buildings, her heart fell with every passing mile. She knew she was once more consigning herself to a life of drudgery – even slavery of a sort. Hers was a loveless marriage, but at least by going back, she would have the satisfaction of knowing Starsky would be safe. Sadly, she wiped the last tears from her eyes and as the cab drew up outside the large house, she paid the driver, got out and heaved a deep calming sigh.

It was still fairly early in the morning and the drapes were still drawn across the windows, but Melanie made her way around to the back door. The door was unlocked and she let herself into the kitchen just as Manny came into the room, dressed in his city pants and a vest. He stared for a moment at the woman.

'You're back' he said unnecessarily and without enthusiasm. Mel ignored him and walked past to put her small bag in the bedroom. Manny followed her and stood blocking her way back out of the room.

'Where've ya been?'

The woman fixed him with a steely gaze. 'You know fine well where I've been.'

Many loomed over his wife, his hand balled into a fist. 'Don't answer me back woman! You've been with that pretty cop aint'cha? Kept him warm did ya? Made sure he gave ya what ya wanted?'

'Manny, don't do this. I'm back. You made your point, but whatever you do, I'll never have the feelings for you that I have for Dave.'

The big man pushed Melanie backwards, his hand punching at her shoulder. 'He got the message, did he? And what about you, ya little whore? Did you enjoy yourself with him?'

Melanie tried to duck out of the way but Manny pushed her back and she stumbled falling backwards onto the bed. In a second, the man had pinned her down to the mattress. With one hand he grabbed her wrists and held them down above her head while he pushed his other hand between her legs, pulling her panties to one side. Melanie screamed as she felt his big rough fingers pushing against her opening and she tried to kick him away. He slapped at her and brought his wetted fingers up so that they were in front of her face.

'He enjoyed ya did he? Is this his? Did you moan for him like the little bitch you are?'

Melanie closed her eyes and lay still. It was pointless fighting with him. Manny was a bully and the more she squirmed, the more he enjoyed it. 'Let me go' she whispered. 'Let me go.'

Manny stared at her. 'Shuddup bitch. Get yourself together and then start your chores. I'll be gone most of the day. And don't try nothing, I'll disconnect the phone before I leave.' He pushed her back, slapped her face once more and turned his back on her as Mel stoically refused to cry. As Manny left, Mel pulled down her skirt, sat up and rubbed gently at her sore and reddened face. She was back and life would no longer be good.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Starsky stared at the piece of paper in disbelief. 'She's gone' he whispered. 'How could she do that? How could she just go?'

'She did it coz she knows it's for the best, buddy. And she's right. You know she is' Hutch said gently. 'It would never have worked out. She's saving you the heartache before things get too serious.'

'It's gone too far for that. I love her. I thought she loved me. She can't be gone. Where is she? Can I still catch her? When did she go?' With a barely stifled hiss the brunet got out of the bed and limped to the bedroom door. He looked around the living room as though he would find the woman hiding behind once of the chairs maybe. Soulful indigo eyes glared back at Hutch.

'I need to go get her. Gimme my pants, I'm goin' round to Division Street.'

'No Starsk, you're not.'

'What the fuck are you talkin' about? I'm goin' round there an' I'm going to get her back. She doesn't know what she's doin'. Manny will kill her!'

Hutch grabbed his partner's wrist and pulled him back. 'Now don't lets over dramatise the point. Starsk….Starsky! Don't do this to yourself buddy. Let her go. She's talking sense. She knows this is the right thing to do.'

Angrily Starsky ripped his arm away from Hutch's grasp. 'What the fuck do you know? I bet you're so pleased aren't ya? This is what you wanted. You never wanted me to be with her, that's why I never told ya. I knew you'd be like this. You were like this with Sharman. You were like this with Rosey. It's like you're tryin' to run my life, like you're scared a woman will replace you! Well enjoy the moment Blondie, you got what you wanted' he yelled.

Hutch ground his teeth to stop from snapping back. 'Starsky listen to yourself. Just shuddup and think for a minute huh? Sharman was a material witness in a robbery. Of course you shouldn't have taken her in, but you did coz she was a bird with a wing down. Rosey was another hit and again, you had to get involved. Like I said, it's in your nature, you can't help yourself. But you've said it yourself. Mel is different - in lots of ways. I don't doubt you loved her, and that she loved you. She's gone because she loved you, can't you see that? She left so that you wouldn't be Manny Monaghan's punchbag any more.'

'Maybe she did, but it's your attitude that has me pissed. I can tell you're still glad. You and your holier than though Baptist ways. Just coz she was married. It was a sham. He don't love her. Not like I do. So take that fuckin' smile off your face Hutchinson' Starsky leaned back against the door lintel panting slightly, his finger still pointing incriminatingly at Hutch.

The flaxen haired cop bit his lip, trying to bite back the retort. Starsky was hurting, he knew that and it would do no good to start yelling back, even though the brunet's words stung and hurt almost like physical blows. Instead, the blond turned on his heel and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. He stood just outside the room and breathed deeply, counting to ten before he went to the kitchen and made coffee. Minutes later Starsky came out of the bedroom fully dressed.

'You still here?' the brunet grunted. 'I thought I'd told ya to back off.'

'Uh huh.'

'So why are you hangin' round? Are you stayin' to watch the misery? Or are you just hangin' around to make sure I don't go over there and get her back?'

Hutch rounded on his partner, coffee mug in his hand. The contents sloshed onto the tiled floor. 'That's enough Starsky. I can take so much, but this is me with my severely pissed face on. It might have escaped your notice, but we're still cops and it's almost time for work.'

'Not goin'. The curly haired cop sat down heavily on the sofa and put his head in his hands. He presented a picture of abject misery and Hutch's anger blew away like so much mist in the breeze. The blond closed his eyes, swallowing down the lump in his throat. He crossed the room and handed the cup of coffee to his partner.

'Whatever you think Starsk, I am sorry she's gone. She was a lovely girl and I agree she shouldn't have to deal with a boor like her husband. I've never seen you quite so happy and I know you're hurtin'. Whatever you think, I'm not happy she's gone.'

'No?'

'No, of course not. But whatever way you look at it, you were playin' with fire Pal.'

'It felt good though. It felt like we were always meant to be together. We could've really made sumthin of it, ya know? Like I could've settled down with her. Maybe she'll change her mind and come back.'

'If she does, she doesn't love you like you think she does' Hutch said softly.

'How d'ya figure that?' Starsky sipped his coffee and stared morosely at the floor.

'Look at yourself Starsk, your wrist, your ankle, your face. Last night was just a warning. If you and she kept seein' each other Manny Monaghan is gonna step it up. Melanie doesn't want that to happen. She's gone because she loves you so much she'd give up her happiness to save you from being hurt. Let her do the right thing huh?'

Starsky swallowed hard. He felt empty, his heart heavy, the apartment suddenly lonely despite Hutch being there. 'But it does hurt' he whispered. 'It hurts in here' he pointed at his chest.

'I know buddy. It'll hurt for a while yet, but it'll get easier, I promise.'

The brunet raised his head sadly. 'Maybe I don't want it to get easier' he said.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14 – 12 days later**

Hutch drew up outside the apartment at 2000 Ridgeway and sighed. Once again, the place was in darkness and once again he knew he would find Starsky sitting alone in the dark. It had been the same every night since Melanie had left and it was beginning to wear at the blond cop's nerves. Sensitive and sympathetic as Hutch was there was only so much he could take.

In the beginning, he'd tried to jolly Starsky along. The brunet got mechanically into the car at the beginning of the day, barely spoke and got out again at the end of the day. He was listless, his eyes dull and the strut in his step gone. Hutch had tried allsorts to try to get some spark of life back into the brunet but nothing he tried did the trick. Lunches at Toni's Burritos, the promise of drinks at the Pits, a night out at the cinema – nothing seemed to interest his partner.

Towards the end of the first week of his separation, Hutch had walked into the apartment one morning to find Starsky slumped on the sofa, his eyes closed and his hand wrapped round an almost empty bottle of tequila. The room stunk of the strong liquor and Hutch had quickly crossed the room and taken the bottle away, putting it on the countertop as Starsky's eyes opened and he stared drunkenly at his partner.

'Wha' time's it?' he'd slurred.

'Time you were sober. What the fuck is all this about, huh? Look at yourself. You gotta pull yourself together buddy.'

'I got a phone call.' Starsky had said, by way of explanation.

'Yeah? Who from?'

'Seems Mr Monaghan wanted to gloat that he'd got his "property" back. He told me t'stay away if I knew what was good for me.'

Hutch sat down by the side of his partner. 'Oh, shit Starsk. I'm sorry.'

'Uh huh? So am I. Ya know he holds her prisoner, don't ya?'

'Prisoner? How? You're jokin' me' Hutch said, his brow furrowed deeply.

'She told me he locks her in the house when he goes out. He keeps her without money an' he only lets her out so long as he's with her. That's not a life…..it's no life for her. Not for Melanie.'

'No it isn't, but they're married. We can't interfere unless…..'

'Unless he hurts her again, I know. I don't want to wait for that Hutch. I stay here every night waitin' for the phone call sayin' he's beaten her up again and I can't do a damned thing about it. But if he lays one more finger on her head, I'm gonna come down on that turkey so hard he's gonna wonder whether it's Tuesday or Christmas' Starsky had said with feeling.

Now the curtains were closed across the windows once again and Hutch let himself into the darkened room and across to Starsky's bedroom. He shook his head angrily when he saw the curly haired cop still asleep on the bed, his arm flung wide and the sheet covering only his middle.

'Starsky!' Hutch shouted. 'Wakey wakey.'

The brunet woke with a jump and looked guiltily at his buddy. 'Is it that time?' he asked in a monotone. Dark circles ringed his eyes and there was a couple of days growth of beard on his face, testament to the fact that the usually fastidious cop had no interest in life.

'Yeah…..again. C'mon Pal, get with the plan. You can't keep doin' this I'm running out of excuses for Dobey. He's already asked what's goin' on and he didn't buy you trippin' over a black cat under a ladder when you went limping into work that first day. It's been almost two weeks Starsk. You gotta start pulling yourself together.'

Wearily, the brunet dragged himself out of bed. 'What if I don't want to "pull myself together"? What if I can't? What if I just want to sack the whole thing?'

Hutch's anger rose and he snapped back. 'I'm getting' tired of this Starsk so don't push it. Just go an' get your shower and be quick. I'll have coffee ready for you.'

With a non committal grunt the smaller man padded off into the bathroom and Hutch could hear the water beginning to run. That was the worst of all this. Starsky didn't even rise to the bait any more. The blond had tried being sympathetic, joking, serious and had verged on angry on a couple of occasions, but now, he could feel his blood beginning to boil. There was no way that he was going to spend another day with a silent, brooding man in the confines of his car.

While Starsky showered, Hutch picked out some clothes. Dark blue jeans and a dark blue tee shirt. He laid them on the bed along with Starsky's black leather jacket, holster, gun, shield and cuffs and sat back to wait. Minutes later, his partner came out of the bathroom and started to get dressed, again without a word. Hutch handed him a cup of black coffee and he drank down the bitter brew in one before heading out of the door silently with Hutch in tow.

The day went much the same. Starsky was quiet, morose. He neither looked interested in what was going on nor seemed to care and by 3:00 Hutch had had about as much as he could handle. Sighing deeply, he turned his car in the direction of Ridgeway without the brunet making a comment and when they finally drew up outside the apartment, Starsky looked up as though he was seeing his house for the first time.

'What're we doin' here?' he asked.

'You're going to go inside. You're gonna shave, eat a proper meal and go to bed and tomorrow you are gonna be back to the same Dave Starsky I've partnered for the past ten years. This is it Pal. I've tried everything in the book and I can't get through to you. I'm past worryin' Starsk. I'm just plain angry now. For Gods sake pull yourself together huh? I'm as sympathetic as the next man, but this has got to stop. Moping won't change the fact she's gone and it sure as hell won't bring her back.'

The brunet stared down at his hands. 'I know, I'm sorry, you're right. I need sleep and food. You're a good pal Hutch, thanks.'

The soft words brought a lump to the blond's throat and he closed his eyes for a moment feeling a complete bastard for having given his partner those home truths. He reached over and patted Starsky's knee.

'See you tomorrow partner? You know where I am if you need me.'

'I know. Thanks buddy.' Starsky got out of the car and walked slowly up the steps to his apartment. He opened the door went in and as he closed it, Hutch drove off.

The curly haired cop felt alone in his own house. Each room; each corner rang with Mel's laughter. Each piece of furniture held a memory of her and yet this had to stop. Hutch was right, he knew that. He was torturing himself with his memories and his love for the woman.

Starsky made himself some scrambled eggs and forced himself to eat a few mouthfuls. The food stuck in his throat, but he forced it down before going into the bathroom and staring at his reflection in the mirror. Mechanically, he ran the water, soaped his face and shaved off the beard.

Feeling a little more human, he walked back into the living room and turned on the TV, flicking through the channels while not watching any particular one of them. Turning the set off again, he flicked through some back copies of Practical Photographer, but again, nothing seemed to interest him and finally, at 7:30, he made his decision. Hutch was right. Mel was a chapter in his life that was coming to an end, but he wanted to close it properly. He wanted one last look at the woman he could happily have called his wife.

With his plan firmly in mind, Starsky took his car keys, let himself out of the house and got into the car. He drove steadily and with a focus he hadn't had for days over town and across to Division street and turned off his lights as he coasted down the street and came to a stop outside 2051. From his vantage point across the road, he could see the lights shining warmly behind the closed drapes. Somehow being so close to the woman made him feel a little calmer and for over an hour, Starsky sat staring at the window, the line of the old song running through his head "On the street where you live".

For a long time, nothing happened. The house stood almost silent on its plot, the light still hidden behind the drapes and it wasn't until the brunet was about to give up and turn the car back towards home that a movement caught the corner of his eye. He looked up and there silhouetted in the window stood Melanie, her hand on the drapes as she stared back at him.

Starsky's heart raced. She was there and she'd seen him. He raised his hand and gave a small wave and Mel looked over her shoulder back towards the room before the drapes closed and Starsky held his breath. A minute later, the side door opened, letting a shaft of bright light out onto the driveway and a tiny figure appeared carrying a bag of garbage to take to the bin.

Swiftly, Starsky got out of the car and raced across the road to her. A large bush stood at the corner of the driveway and the brunet pulled her into its shadow, his arms wrapped around her as he smiled and kissed her full on the lips.

'God I've missed you so much. Why did you leave? Are you ok? Can't you come back with me?' he asked in one breath.

Melanie had tears in her eyes. 'Dave, I love you so much. I'm sorry, I just couldn't bear what Many had done to you. I had to come back….for your safety. I miss you too' she said, her mouth once more claiming his.

They were hungry for each other. They devoured each other as though their lives depended on their kisses. Hands roamed over each other's bodies and Mel pressed herself against Starsky one more time before she broke away.

'We can't do this…..it's wrong. I need to go.'

'Don't.' Starsky took a hold of her hand and squeezed it. 'Come away with me. I can keep you safe. We can be together.'

'You might be able to keep me safe but what about you? Manny would kill you and I couldn't bear that. Dave, don't you understand, I left you because I love you. I left because I couldn't handle the thoughts of what he'd done to you. Let me go huh?'

The brunet bowed his head. 'I can't. You're my life.'

'No my love, I'd be your death. Please don't put that burden on me. Let me go and don't come back huh?' Just one last kiss and then that's it.' Melanie stood on tip toe and kissed Starsky once more on his lips, savouring his taste until she pulled away. Without a backwards glance, she walked away back up the driveway, leaving the brunet to watch her go.

'I love you Mel Monaghan' he hissed after her. 'You can't get rid of me so easy.'

At the door, she turned and waved one last time before going inside and closing the door. Starsky sighed, his heart once more in his sneakers as he got back into the car and drove home to his apartment and the start of life on his own again.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15 – another 2 weeks later. A warning - the chapter contains some sexual violence. if this offends, please don't read past the first half of the chapter.**

The bar was smoky and the music beat loud against the cop's ears as they stood leaning on the counter top, beer glasses in hand. Huggy Bear, the proprietor of The Pits was taking a well earned rest from pouring drinks as he propped up his side of the bar, his lanky black frame nestling into the corner of the woodwork, a glass of rum and coke in his hand.

'So how goes the world of crime?' he asked above the noise.

'It's quiet. It's been quiet for weeks Hug. I'm beginnin' to think that everyone has gone on vacation. Hutch has even tidied his desk drawer out' Starsky said.

In truth it was still quiet in Bay City. The intense summer heat that usually brought with it a spurt of nasty, anger related knifings and shootings seemed this year to have driven the better known criminals inside seeking cool and dark. The Santa Annas that usually infuriated tempers and ignited trouble were as hot and fast as ever, but this year people were hiding indoors rather that enduring the oppressive temperatures. The Metro had never been so quiet. Dobey was even talking about getting the squad room painted again although being an old time cop his superstition had so far gotten the better of him. The last time the decorators had descended on the precinct, five bullets had made their way through David Starsky's body and into his Torino. It was not something that the police Captain wanted to repeat.

'Starsky wanted a vacation' Hutch yelled over the music. 'I suggested a camping trip.'

'And I suggested sumthin that seems physically impossible' the brunet retorted with a grin. It faded quickly, but in the past two weeks, since he'd said his goodbyes to Melanie, he had fought hard to return to his old self.

Hutch had seen some improvement in his partner. It was slow and it was tough going and the blond had come to realise that far from being a flash in the pan, the love affair Starsky had had with Mel was real and intense and the break up had wrecked the smaller man.

'I know you love the great outdoors buddy. I was gonna give you a treat' Hutch grinned back.

'A treat to me is a five star hotel on a Miami beach surrounded by bikini clad women. Tag along a six pack of beers an' I'm in seventh heaven.'

'Uh huh. With cirrhosis of the liver and a dose of clap' Hutch finished. 'Now if you were to take a nice camping trip in the mountains with me….'

'I'd be eaten by a bear or bitten by a snake. Somehow, I'm thinkin' I'll take the clap buddy.'

'If you got that, it'd drop off' Huggy commented sagely.

'Well it aint like I'm usin' it for much at the moment' the brunet grunted and stared hard at the bottom of his glass. Huggy looked crestfallen and Hutch winked at the bar tender in support.

Starsky looked up and smiled. 'Guess that killed the conversation dead' he said softly. 'Sorry.'

The three went back to their drinks for a while. The conversation flowed about everything and nothing and the evening wore on in a pleasant but ordinary sort of way. It wasn't until going up for midnight, when the two detectives were due to be leaving that the door opened and a large, familiar figure walked into the room and up to the bar, standing a few yards away from Starsky's side. Immediately, Hutch put his arm out and made a grab for his partner's arm. 'Not now Starsk, leave it be' the blond hissed.

'Bourbon on the rocks' Manny Monaghan ordered, his voice loud and authoritative, drowning out the music. He looked sideways and grinned mirthlessly at Starsky. 'Well, if it aint Mr "Can't keep his dick in his pants". Are you feelin' lonely these days?' he asked.

Hutch felt the brunet stiffen, but Starsky employed his iron control and refrained from answering. Instead he put his half full glass of beer down on the counter and started to leave.

'Aww, goin' so soon? Was it something I said?' Manny asked.

'No, nothing you said, just don't enjoy the company' the brunet managed to grind out through his clenched jaw.

'No, that's right. You prefer the company of other men's wives, don't you?'

Starsky turned and stared at the big man. He smiled pityingly. 'You have no idea what a special woman you've got there. For some fuckin' reason, that girl sticks by ya. I guess it's more fear than anythin' else, but count yourself lucky that you've got her, huh?'

'That's right, cop. I've got her an' you haven't and don't ever forget it huh? You come sneakin' round my house again and I'm gonna fuckin' kill her. Is that clear?'

'You lay one finger on her and I'm gonna make sure you never touch another woman again. I love her an' if you even breathe too hard on her next time, it's you that's' gonna be lookin' for an undertaker' Starsky snarled, taking a step forward. Hutch grabbed a hold of him and pulled him back.

'Starsk don't. He's baitin' ya. Come away huh?'

'Yeah do what your keeper tells ya. Stay away from my wife and stay away from my house. I don't want no bastard cop messin' with my woman.'

'Well at least she got some with me. At least I showed her what love is' Starsky yelled, the words out of his mouth before he'd had chance to think.

'Uh huh. That's what I thought. She said you hadn't, but I knew you'd dipped your wick. Filthy little bitch!' With that, Manny knocked his drink back in one and strode out of the bar, knocking the two detectives out of the way as Huggy let out his breath.

'Man, that is one mean dude!'

The blond rounded on his partner, his crystal blue eyes seeking answers. 'What did you do Starsk? What's he talkin' about? Did you go round to see Mel?' Hutch asked.

'I needed to say goodbye. I just needed to see her one more time. That's all. It was almost two weeks ago, why's he taken all this time to warn me off?'

'Shit Starsky, can't you just leave it alone? She left you so that there'd be no more trouble! She's obviously got more brains than you have.'

'Well aint hindsight a great thing!' the brunet snapped angrily. 'Don't go there Blondie. We've been there before an' I aint fond of it. Just leave it alone. Mel an' me aren't together any more. Period.'

Hutch held up his hands in surrender. 'Ok, fine. I'm sorry, I should've kept my mouth shut. I have to admit, when the two of you got together I never realised just how serious it was.'

Starsky's temper backed down a notch. 'It was the real deal' he said sadly. 'She's a special lady.'

'And she had a special guy for a while' Hutch said very softly. 'Come on, Romeo, let's get ya home to bed.'

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Manny Monaghan made his way out of the bar and to his car. The bourbon he'd just drunk in the Pits topped up the six or so doubles he's consumed at his club previously. Up until then, he'd been glad just to have Melanie back. Not that he'd missed her too much, but she was convenient, she provided the occasional diversion and she was eye candy when he needed to impress a client.

When Manny had first seen the fifteen year old Melanie, he'd fallen for her tiny frame and her schoolgirl looks. She looked 12 and his perverted mind danced somersaults as he envisioned claiming her body as his own. As her parent's tenancy progressed in his house and Melanie grew older, the big man never lost the desire to own the girl. She never looked her age and his dreams late at night all centred around sex with Mel, dressed in short skirt, white blouse and long white socks.

A few years later, when Mel was 18 and her parents died, leaving back rent of over $4000 to be paid, Manny saw his chance. He told Mel that she had a choice. She could either take herself out of school and into a life of drudgery working to earn enough to pay him back with 35 percent interest, or she could marry him and live the life of a rich housewife. He'd made it sound a stark choice and Mel had finally consented to be his wife because she didn't know what else to do. From then on her life took a downward turn and while Mel lived the life of a prisoner in her own house, Manny enjoyed the knowledge that he owned her and could use her whenever he wanted.

That was until the nosey neighbours called the cops when they heard Melanie screaming that night. Then along came the two detectives and Mel just had to fall for the one with the curly hair. Manny self consciously patted his balding pate as he drove. The more he thought about Starsky alone in a room with his wife, the more his alcohol fuelled temper rose so that by the time he drew up outside his house his anger was apparent in his white lips and blazing eyes.

How dare she? How dare his wife go with that cop? How dare she share his bed and his body? Melanie was Manny's property. He'd forgone $4000 to have her instead and she'd cost him dearly in board and food and clothes ever since. Wasn't she satisfied with that? Wasn't she grateful for him giving her a roof over her head?

Getting out of the car, he slammed the door, unlocked the back door and closed it behind him. Manny stalked into the darkened living room and up the stairs to the bedroom. There too the lights were off and that too annoyed the big man. Wasn't a wife supposed to wait up for her husband to come home? What was the world coming to?

Manny marched over to the bed and pulled the covers back from the sleeping woman. She had her long nighty on, the one she wore when she didn't want him to gain too much access to her body and that too angered him.

'Wake up you filthy little bitch' he snapped, punching her hard on the arm.

Instantly awake, Mel refused to shrink back from her husband. Instead she lay on her back and glared up at him, but remained quiet.

'Thought you'd avoid me, did you?'

'I was just asleep' Mel said defensively.

'Yeah, sure you were honey.' Manny stood by the side of the bed and unbuttoned his shirt. He slid it off his shoulders and unbuckled his belt, his belly hanging over the waistband of his trousers. With his left hand, he unzipped himself while with his right, he grabbed Mel's wrist and pulled her up to the edge of the mattress.

'I'll teach you to lie to me. That mouth needs fillin' up if your gonna lie. Here, you know what to do' the big man snarled, pulling Mel's head towards his flabby belly and the thick cock beneath it.

The woman pulled away, the smell of sweat and stale cigarette smoke and liquor hanging around the pale sweating body in front of her like a shroud. Bile rose in her throat and she pulled away again, but the grip around her wrist became crippling in its strength. Manny's left hand captured her head, his fingers grabbing a handful of hair as he pulled her towards him and the sticky tip of his cock touched her lips. She shuddered but the gag of flesh pushed at her lips and reluctantly she opened her mouth and took the offering.

Many grunted, pushing her head closer into his belly until Mel gagged and pulled back forcibly disengaging her gag reflex as her husband brutally fucked her mouth. Again and again, Manny thrust into her until Mel's jaw ached with the invasion and she could feel the texture of the flesh change as he released his salty fluid down her throat.

Gasping Mel finally managed to pull away, breathless and with her eyes watering. She glared at the big, sweating man who collapsed onto the bed.

'God, I keep forgettin' just why I keep you around' he grunted, pulling the sheets over himself as he turned on his side and fell into a drunken sleep.

Mel rushed to the bathroom, spitting and rinsing her mouth again and again with cold water. The cruel brutalisation was the last straw and this time, she knew she needed to act. Walking back into the living room, she took a pen and a sheet of writing paper and carefully penned her note. Slipping into a skirt and blouse, she checked on the snoring bulk of her husband and, assured that he would sleep until late morning, she let herself out of the house, took the car and drove to Ridgeway.

Silently, she climbed the steps to the apartment and leaned her head against the door as though it would somehow bring Starsky closer to her. For a moment, she raised her hand as though to knock on it, but something stopped her. This wasn't the time. She wanted the break with Manny to be clean and then she had the time to spend with Dave for ever, with all the possibilities that held in store.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Melanie let herself back into the dark and quiet house. Now that she'd made her mind up, things seemed so much simpler. She'd never loved Manny. When she'd got married to him, she had hoped that friendship at least may follow, maybe blossoming into something more as the years progressed. The reality though was a far cry from the happy homemaker she'd aspired to be. Manny wanted her as a possession. Like the house and the car that he'd coveted and bought, she was just one more commodity – one more souvenir on the big man's road through life.

At first, for the 18 year old, there had been nothing more that she could think of to do. Her parents had instilled in her the need for honesty and integrity and she knew that the family owed Monaghan $4000. It was too much for her to contemplate raising, but the debt had to be repaid and so she consented to be Manny's wife. At first she harboured the hope that he would be the perfect husband. The house was beautiful and the neighbourhood far better than any she had been brought up in. But a prisoner is a prisoner and it soon became apparent to the young girl that she was trapped albeit in a mink lined cage.

As the years progressed, Manny's sexual appetite proved to become more and more perverted. She was no longer wife so much as plaything. She was a toy to be taken out when he needed relief, and then put away again till next time. Starved of affection, the now 20 year old Mel felt trapped and it wasn't until the handsome curly haired cop had come along that she'd seen some light at the end of the long and lonely tunnel.

When she'd gone back to Manny it had been because she couldn't face having Dave hurt again. Seeing him bruised and cut, and knowing it was because of her was too high a price to pay for her happiness and so she did what she hoped was the right thing, but when she returned to the house, Manny's only answer was to become more and more violent. The brutal sex act was the last straw – that and the news she wouldn't be able to hide from her husband forever. So, screwing up her courage, Mel had made the decision to leave. All she needed to do now was to tell him, pack her few belongings, and go.

Melanie placed the key in the lock of the door and turned it. Softly she opened the door and walked into the kitchen, laying the car keys down with barely a rattle on the kitchen worktop. She shrugged out of her jacket and was just about to climb the stairs back up to the bedroom when the light came on in the stairwell and Manny's large figure loomed like a troll at the top of the stairs.

'Where've you been?' he grunted.

Her heart in her mouth, Mel started up the steps. 'Manny, there's something I have to tell you' she started.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Hutch cuddled up to Ellen, spooning into the woman's back. She was warm and sensuous and last night's love making still held him in its blossom of heat and comfort. Half asleep, he kissed her naked shoulder, his lips barely grazing her soft, tanned, perfumed skin.

'Love you' the blond cop murmured his voice heavy and drugged with sleep.

'Hmm…..love you too' the woman whispered back and turned over so that she was enfolded in strong, muscle corded arms. Ellen's breath tickled at Hutch's bare chest and he nuzzled at her neck, his body more awake than his mind.

'Ken, you're insatiable' the woman muttered, pressing her body into the tanned, hard torso beside her.

'Funny, thought I was a Leo' he smiled at her as he felt her hand start to stray southwards.

'I mean we did it twice already' she giggled.

'Uh huh. I'm going for gold.'

'You look like you're aiming for the bull's-eye.'

'Ooh, is that what it's called' Hutch said softly, claiming Ellen's lips. 'I was wondering about that.'

'Well you can call it what you like honey, I was…..'

The pillow talk was interrupted by the harsh bell of the telephone beside the bed.

'…..noooo, don't answer it' Ellen moaned, pulling Hutch back towards her. 'It'll be Dave and he'll be apologising or something. Leave it. You'll see him again in a couple of hours.'

The blond paused for a moment. Should he just let it ring? The thoughts of making love to his woman were still strong in his mind and his body was eager for more, but as always, visions of his partner in some kind of trouble floated into his consciousness and with a sigh, he rolled over, grabbed the phone and jammed it against his ear.

'Starsk, this had better be life or death' he grunted into the mouthpiece.

'Is that you Hutch?' Mildred's voice from the Metro brought the Nordic cop up short and Hutch sat up in bed, running his free hand though his mussed golden bangs.

'Mildred, what's up?'

'Kellerman and Boon are on nights. They asked me to patch them through to you. Will you take it?'

'Huh? Um….yeah, why?'

'Just hear them out Hon. Metro out.' There were the sounds of mechanical whirrings and switches on the line and then Kellerman's voice sounded down the phone. 'Hutch, is that you?'

'Kelly, what's going down?'

'Sorry to bother you, but um…..Can I ask you this? Have you and Starsky been dealing with the Monaghans – the couple on division Street?'

Hutch felt as though an ice cold hand had clenched around his heart. 'Yeah. We were there a while back for a domestic. The woman was pretty shaken but she wouldn't press charges.'

'Has um….. has Starsky been back since?' Kellerman asked carefully.

'What's this all about Kelly? It's too early for games. What're ya tryin' to say?' Hutch snapped.

'I um….I'm sayin' if that's the case, you should probably get down here right now.'

'Why? You want us to…'

'No, not Starsky. Just you Hutch. We um…. look it's hard to explain. Just get over here, quick huh?'

Hutch replaced the receiver and leapt out of bed.

'What's the matter lover?' Ellen asked.

'Dunno. Something that Starsky an' me were investigatin'. That was one of the guys from the team. He um….he wants me over there. I gotta go Honey.'

Ellen sat up in bed, the sheet clutched under her arms, covering her breasts. 'Of course. Is everything ok? Is Dave ok?'

'They didn't say. I have to go. Lock the door behind you when you leave. Sorry….didn't want to leave you like this' the cop gasped, shouldering into his holster.

'It's fine. Go, go on, I'll wait for a phone call' Ellen said with an understanding smile. Hutch bent down and kissed her on her forehead,

'What did I do to find a girl like you huh?' he smiled as he headed for the door.

Hutch drove quickly through the dark. A cursory glance at the clock on the dash told him it was 4:45. Soon the first tendrils of light would snake across the horizon heralding the morning, but his mind at the moment was full of worry. What had gone on at the Monaghans'? What had Manny done now? And what did it have to do with his partner?

Fortunately, the drive over to Division Street took only a small amount of time and as Hutch turned the corner into the street, he could see two squad cars parked up outside 2051. as he drew up and got out of the car, Bon was waiting for him just outside the back door. The big black man nodded at Hutch as he walked up the drive.

'What's this all about Boon?'

'In there Hutch. We got a call a while ago to another domestic. When we got here…. Well, maybe you should go in.'

As the big blond cop walked into the brightly lit house he could hear Manny Monaghan's loud and boorish voice coming from the sitting room.

'I tell ya I didn't do nothing. The stupid fuckin' bitch fell, that's all. She's so fuckin' clumsy, she'd fall over her own feet. Tell 'em Mel. Tell 'em what happened.'

Hutch ignored the loud rantings of the angry man and instead was directed through the kitchen and to the foot of the stairs. As he walked into the spacious hallway, his breath caught in his throat and he rushed forward almost knocking Kellerman out of the way.

Melanie lay at the foot of the stairs. She was ghostly pale, her skin almost translucent in the harsh electric lights of the hallway. Her eyes were closed and for a moment Hutch suspected the worst. The woman lay almost lifeless, her body crooked, her leg lying at an odd angle from her body and a pool of blood forming around her middle. The cop sank to his knees beside Mel and leaned over her, gently rubbing the tips of his fingers down her cheek.

There was no response and Hutch looked up at Kellerman.

'What happened?'

'We got a call from the neighbours. They said there was shouting and then they heard a scream. They wanted us to come 'round. They said they were sick of the disturbances. When we got here, we found him in the bedroom and her right here. We've only been here a little while, but she wouldn't let us call for an ambulance. She keeps calling for Starsky.'

Hutch sighed and looked down at Mel who seemed to rally a little. Her eyes fluttered open and she gazed, unfocused up at the blond cop before seeming to recognise him.

'Dave…?' she whispered.

'He isn't here honey. It's just me, Hutch.'

'Need Dave…..Dave.'

'You need to go to the hospital. You're bleeding Mel. I think you've broken your leg too' the blond said gently.

Feebly, Mel shook her head. 'Noo…..need t'see him. Something to tell….' The effort cost her dearly and her face crumpled in pain as she clutched at her side and stomach,

'Sssh, don't try to move. I'll call him, ok? But I'm calling the ambulance too. Wait here. I'll be right back.'

Hutch got to his feet. 'Stay with her Kelly. Keep her quiet and don't let her move huh? I think she's hurt internally too. I'll call the meat wagon and Starsky.'

Boon looked over his shoulder. 'I'll call the medics. You call Starsk, huh?' the black man said, heading outside to the car.

Casting around, Hutch looked for the telephone. As he walked into the living room, Manny was still yelling full force. 'You have no right to be here. That there is my wife. I'm sick of you bloody cops and you're holier than thou attitude. You don't understand, spare the rod and spoil the woman, that's what my Daddy always taught me. That, and keep 'em away from other men…..like pretty boy curly head.'

Hutch ground his teeth to keep from entering into a tirade with the big man. There would be time for that later. Right now, he had only one thing on his mind and he crossed the room to the telephone, memories of a similar night and another woman – his woman – lying dead on the floor. This time, however, it was Hutch who would have the explaining to do and Starsky who would be devastated. Taking a deep, calming breath, the blond dialled the number he knew by heart and waited. A moment later a sleep thickened voice sounded down the phone.

'Llo.'

'Starsk?'

'Wha' dya want Blondie? It's stupid o'clock in the mornin'!'

'Starsk, I'm at Mel's house. I um…. I think you should get over here right now.'

Instantly wide awake, Starsky sat up in bed, his eyebrows furrowing. 'What's the matter? What's happened? Is she ok?'

'She's hurt, but she's alive. I can't explain on the phone. Just get over here, quick huh?'

'On my way' the brunet grunted, slamming the phone down and getting his foot caught up in the sheets in his rush to get out of the bed. Never one to take a huge amount of time to get ready, Starsky was dressed and with his holster, gun, shield and cuffs within minutes. He headed out of the bedroom and opened the front door and as he did so, a slip of pale, white paper lay on the step. He bent down, grabbed it and flipped it open, reading the words with a rapidly beating heart.

My Darling Dave,

I can't take it any more, and I have made the decision to leave Manny for good.

If you'll have me, I would love to try to make a life together.

I have to tell Manny face to face, I owe him that at least.

Meet me by the pier at noon.

I have news for you that I hope will make you as happy as it makes me.

Your Mel.

Carefully, Starsky folded the letter and put it in his jacket pocket as he rushed out of the house and down the steps. Getting into the Torino, he slammed the mars light onto the roof, started the sirens and floored the gas pedal.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Starsky drove like a maniac. Tyres screeched, the steering wheel spinning through his competent but shaking hands as he sped across the city towards Division Street. He'd spent long enough working with Hutch to read his partner, even over the telephone. There was a tight, hesitant quality to the blond's voice that indicated to Starsky that whatever he was going to find at 2051, he wasn't going to like it too much. Visions of Manny Monaghan's huge bull neck, beer belly and bloated, sweating face plagued his mind, accompanied by sweeter pictures of an elfin faced, petite girl, her face bruised and her head bleeding as it had been when he'd first seen her.

The brunet cursed under his breath. Why the hell had she ever gone back to her husband? And then his eyes fell on the bandage still surrounding his wrist and felt the healing scars on his face as though for the first time, and his partner's velvety voice of reason rang through his head – "She did it because she loves you Starsk. She couldn't bear to have you hurt."

The darkened city flashed past the thundering engine of the car. Starsky shot through each intersection as though his life depended on it. He ran every red light, the flashing lights on his car and the wailing of the two tone siren forging a way through the few cars that were out driving so early in the new morning. And yet nothing seemed fast enough for the brunet and he yelled out into the cabin of the car as though his voice would somehow spur the car on to better and faster progress. As the high rise office blocks and plush apartments gave way to the lower lying suburbs, the cop could almost scent the drama in the air. The Torino side slipped around the final corner, the back end slewing sickeningly to the left. Starsky expertly corrected the over steer, feeding the wheel through his hands and slammed on the brakes outside the big familiar house. His hands were opening the car door even as the last notes of the engine died in the early morning air and the brunet leapt from the big red and white machine, vaulted over the hood and raced up the driveway to the open kitchen door.

The house was still brightly lit despite the early morning sun now peeping over the horizon. Birds were beginning their dawn chorus and the fresh cool breeze held a promise of a perfect Californian day to come but the beauty of the fresh dawn was lost on the brunet. Starsky pushed his way inside the house just as the distant notes of the ambulance could be heard, getting louder and closer and looked around him desperately. Hutch was waiting for him in the kitchen and as Starsky tried to get past, the blond took hold of his buddy by the shoulders, holding him back.

'Where's Mel? What's happened?' Starsky demanded.

'Starsk, slow down. She's in there. She's alive. She's gonna be ok, but you have to calm down before you see her huh?'

'Calm down? Why? Lemme go.'

'She's pretty banged up buddy. Take it slow with her ok? She's dazed, she keeps losing consciousness. The ambulance is on its way.'

Starsky took a deep breath. 'Fine. Let me see her huh? I just wanna see her.'

Hutch smiled sadly and stood back. 'Go on, she's in the hallway.'

The brunet walked through the kitchen and into the living room where Manny was still sitting, handcuffed and waiting, accompanied by two uniformed cops. He looked up as the brunet came into the room and his face cracked into a leer.

'Oh well, if it aint lover boy come to see his whore' the huge man snapped. The cop at his side poked him in the ribs.

'Shut it' the uniform snapped as Starsky glared at him for one second and then hurried on out and into the hallway. Kellerman was still crouched by the young woman. He'd taken off his jacket and had put a pillow under her head but knew better than to move her too much. He looked up as Starsky walked in and got up to stand back.

'We found her right here. The neighbours called us. She keeps asking for you' he explained.

The brunet nodded his understanding and dropped to his knees by the side of the crumpled body. Mel's face was white against the pillow and her eyes were closed. Occasionally she would roll her head and moan, her body curling against some internal pain but for the most part, she lay pale and still. Hutch had used a blanket from one of the bedrooms to cover her and Starsky couldn't see the fast forming pool of blood beneath her. Gently, he leaned over and ran his hand over her forehead.

'Mel, it's me honey. It's Davey' he said quietly.

Slowly her eyes opened and Melanie looked up into concerned indigo blue eyes. A tiny smile played across her lips. 'Dave…. Knew you'd come.'

'Course I would. Why did you have to come back here honey? Why now?'

The woman licked at her dry lips. 'Needed to tell Manny…..s'over.'

'I got your note. I read it.'

A tear crept down her cheek. 'I'm so sorry.'

'For what? What're you sorry for honey?'

'I'm sorry I …..' another coiled of pain robbed Melanie of her breath and she tried to pull her knees up to her chest, moaning again at the sudden movement.

'Ssh, don't try to talk. The ambulance is nearly here, they'll take care of you' the brunet soothed as he grasped her small hand in his and continued to stroke her cheek with the other.

'S'too late…..I'm sorry' she whispered.

'Too late, no you're gonna be fine. You'll be ok honey, I know you will. Just hang in there, ok? For me?'

Melanie's eyes closed and she sighed. 'For you…..anything.' The hand enveloped in the curly man's own relaxed and Mel's eyes closed as she lapsed into unconsciousness. Starsky looked up, seeing Hutch as though for the first time.

'Where's the damned medics? Aren't they here yet?' he snapped.

'Almost. I can hear 'em. She'll be ok Starsk.'

'She kept telling me she was sorry. What for? What's she got to be sorry for? It's me that should be sorry for not insisting she stayed safe with me' the brunet said bitterly.

At that moment, the paramedics bustled into the hallway, a bag of medical equipment with them and a stretcher which they propped against the wall.

'Who's in charge here?' one of them asked.

'I am' Kellerman said. 'But Sergeant Starsky knows more about the injured woman.'

Starsky looked up. 'Um, this is Melanie. She um…..she's 20… help her huh?'

The medic saw the shock in the man's eyes and the shake in the brunet's hands and very gently pushed him to one side. 'That's ok, we can take it from here' he said quietly as Hutch helped his partner to his feet.

As the two paramedics started to work over the unconscious woman, Hutch drew Starsky to one side. 'Let 'em work huh?' he said.

'Yeah, right' the brunet muttered distractedly. He looked down and saw blood on the knees of his jeans and as the medic moved the blanket to assess the damage, Starsky got his first view of the blood on the ground. His temper, which had so far been kept in check by his concern for Mel flared and he whirled towards the living room.

'He pushed her, didn't he? He knew what she was gonna do and he pushed her down the fuckin' stairs didn't he?' he growled.

'Starsk, what're ya talkin' about? What was she gonna do? Slow down buddy' Hutch asked. Silently, Starsky fumbled in his jeans pocket and passed him the note he'd found behind his front door. The blond unfolded it and read it. He closed his eyes, a look of pain and concern flitting across his handsome features. 'I'm sorry buddy' he said softly.

'She was gonna leave him and come to live with me. She asked me if I still wanted her. Where is he? Where's that fuckin' bastard?' Starsky yelled, pushing Hutch out of the way. The brunet whirlwind swept into the living room and pushed the two uniformed cops out of the way. He took Manny by his collar and lifted him bodily from the sofa where he'd been sitting, his face inches away from the cuffed man's.

'You know the thing I hate most about guys like you?' he snarled.

'I'm sure you're gonna tell me' Manny replied, trying for an air of indifference.

'It's the fact they never pick on anyone their own size. What's your problem Pal? Can't face a fair fight? You have to pick on girls, or get hard men to do your dirty work for ya?'

'No, it's that I wouldn't want to soil my hands on dickheads like you that can't get a woman of their own so they have to take someone else's' Manny snapped.

With a roar of rage, Starsky drew back his fist, fully intending to slam it full force into the reddened, bloated features of the big man in front of him. He had time to hear the gasp of surprise from Manny; he had time to see the fleeting look of fear flash across the florid face; he had time to feel the surge of righteous anger coursing through his veins as his fist began it's forward arc and then he felt another hand, another strong, square, capable hand grab his wrist and force him back.

With a yell, Starsky rounded on his partner as Hutch propelled him backwards until the brunet's back was wedged up against the wall opposite. With the blond's knee between his legs and Hutch's full weight leaning into him, the brunet struggled to get back at his target, his left hand pinned against the wall of the living room.

'Back off man' Starsky yelled. 'Back off and let me get at him.'

'Yeah, that's right. It takes two of you to get at an unarmed, defenceless, handcuffed man does it?' Manny taunted from the other side of the room.

'I mean it Hutch, I'll go through ya if I can't get round ya. He deserves everythin' he gets' the curly haired cop ground out through clenched teeth. The sinews in his neck corded with the strain of trying to get to his target and it took all Hutch's strength and will to keep his partner back. In truth, the blond would gladly have let Starsky pulverise the big bully into a thousand pieces, but this was neither the time, nor the place. Instead, Hutch grabbed the left wrist all the tighter, panting with exertion.

'Get that turkey outa here' the flaxen haired cop snapped over his shoulder. Turning back to the trembling brunet, he locked eyes with his partner. 'Starsk, you don't wanna do this partner. Not here, not now. Think of Mel. She needs ya now buddy. Leave him for the uniforms, there'll be time for that later' the blond hissed quietly. For a moment it looked as though the curly haired cop was going to fight his partner to get to Manny Monaghan. The detectives locked eyes, cool crystal blues boring into troubled indigo pools, pouring oil on the troubled cerulean waters. Starsky's body relaxed and he let out a low moan of desperation as his head sunk down, his forehead resting against Hutch's chest as the blond rubbed his partner's shoulders comfortingly.

'Better huh? Ya gonna make it?' the blond asked quietly.

'If she does.'

At that moment there was a low groan from the hallway and Starsky turned to see the paramedics lifting Melanie's body onto the gurney. They draped a blanket over her, secured straps across her legs and chest and started to wheel her out of the house. Starsky looked back at Hutch.

'Go in the ambulance with her. I'll bring your car on and maybe one of the others can drive mine back to the station' the flaxen haired cop offered.

'What about him?' Starsky asked thinking about Monaghan.

'Let Kellerman and Boon deal with him. Go and be with Mel huh? She needs you, that's the important thing.'

With a backwards glance at the men in the other room, Starsky followed the gurney out to the waiting ambulance and got inside as Hutch sighed, finalised details with Kellerman and got into the Torino.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18 - and a happy Easter to you all**

Boon paced the small interview room, the smoke from his cigarette curling up in a lazy blue spiral from his lips as his eyes narrowed against the acrid plume. With his collar undone and the knot of his tie now somewhere round mid chest level, his face held the air of one who was fast losing what little patience he had left. He paused by the side of the table again and glared down into the red face of his prisoner.

'From the top. What happened tonight?'

Manny sighed dramatically. 'How many times do I need to tell you bozos? My wife went out. When she came back I got up to check if she was ok. I was gonna make her a drink. I got to the top of the stairs, she was walking up, she tripped, I tried to catch her but she fell almost from top to bottom. I was gonna call the ambulance when you two turned up.'

'So why did you start yellin' at her not to talk to us? If you were so concerned for her safety, why were you sat in the living room when we got there? Why did you leave her alone?'

'I told you, I'm squeamish. I hate the sight of blood.'

'Uh huh, and pigs are gonna fly' Boon snapped impatiently.

'Well you'd be the one to know about that' Monaghan smiled.

Boon threw his cigarette down onto the floor, grabbed Manny by his collar and shook him bodily. 'I wouldn't be too quick with the jokes fatso. It's you that's facin' an attempted murder rap, not me.'

At the back of him, Kellerman grabbed his partner's shoulder and dragged him away from the big, handcuffed man. 'Boon, take it outside Pal. C'mon, he aint worth it. Cool it buddy' he said softly.

With a snarl, Boon virtually threw Manny back down onto the chair with such force that it rocked backwards onto its two back legs, almost overbalancing and depositing Manny onto the floor. The chair righted itself and a knowing smile flowed over the big man's face.

'You think you're so intimidating? You aint got nothing on me, that's why you got your nuts in a twist. I'm not sayin' another word till I see my lawyer.'

'If I had my way, your mouth'd be so full of fist, you wouldn't say nothin' for months' Boon snapped as he was propelled outside by his partner. Kellerman closed the door behind him and Boon braced his hands against the wall of the corridor, his head hanging down. With a yell, he slammed his fist into the wall and followed it with a kick for good measure.

'Jim, don't do this' Kellerman said, passing Boon a cup of water from the cooler.

'He's right, that's the shit part. We haven't got a thing from the woman, just the history of domestic violence. We have hospital records, but they all show accidental injuries, she's never pressed charges before, so what makes us think she's gonna start now?'

'But with her injuries….'

Boon looked up angrily. 'Kelly, you know as well as I do we're wastin' our time. The DA would never take a case like this. There's not one iota of evidence that we can rely on. He says she tripped. There's no one to say otherwise. It'd be her word against his even if she did decide to give evidence.'

'Maybe Starsky can persuade her' Kellerman said doubtfully.

'Yeah, and maybe the DA would just tell us that's police coercion. C'mon buddy, you an' me know the only way that woman is ever gonna be safe is if the Women's Refuge get involved.'

Kellerman shrugged his shoulders. 'Would she want us to call 'em?'

'Does she have a choice here? It's either that, or the next time that turkey sees his wife, he's gonna kill her for sure.'

The big red headed cop pursed his lips. 'If we're gonna call 'em in, we'd better do it fast. We can't keep him and his lawyer apart for too much longer and the minute the lawyer gets here, Monaghan is gonna be walkin' outa here.'

Boon pushed himself off the wall. 'No time like the present then. Leave him in there to stew for a while. I'll make the call.'

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

Starsky sat in the back of the ambulance by the side of the gurney. Mel lay still, her eyes closed and her eyelids almost translucent. Long brown lashes rested against her pale cheeks, making her skin appear all the paler. With a BP cuff around her arm, an IV needle inserted in the back of her hand and an oxygen mask over her mouth and nose, she looked young, vulnerable and incredibly fragile. The brunet wished her could hold her in his arms and rock her, letting her know that everything would be alright but he doubted that that would be the case. The paramedic sitting in the back of the ambulance with them had said that she had a fractured tibia and a dislocated knee. She's also lost a lot of blood and they suspected internal bleeding although it was difficult to assess exactly where the bleeding was coming from – that would have to be done my the doctor at the hospital. For the time being, all they could do was to keep her sats up and get fluids pumped into her body. She'd had some pain relief, but until the medic could determine what was going on, they couldn't give too much – just in case. It never crossed Starsky's mind to ask "in case of what". Instead, he sat transfixed by the side of the young woman, holding her hand, soothing her brow and occasionally leaning close to whisper into her ear that he loved her.

The ambulance finally drew to a halt outside Mercy hospital, the closest to Division Street and not one that Starsky was particularly familiar with. The back doors opened and as the two paramedics started to unload the gurney, the brunet was relieved to see his Torino pull up into the parking lot and Hutch get out. With Starsky walking by the side of the gurney into the ER, the blond cop ran to catch up.

At the door to the ER, the doctor took over and started to do a preliminary assessment as a nurse pushed Starsky gently to one side.

'I'm afraid you'll have to wait outside' she said.

'No, I need to be with her' the brunet mumbled.

'Are you her husband?'

'What? No, um…..I'm just a friend, but…'

'Then I'm sorry Sir, you'll have to wait outside. As soon as I know anything, I'll come and tell you' the woman said and disappeared inside the room, closing the door behind her. Starsky stood rooted to the spot, staring at the closed door, his hands at his side and his eyes closed. Gently, Hutch put his arm round his friend's shoulder and steered him away to a small visitor's room, sitting him down mechanically on one of the utilitarian chairs there.

'Starsk, you can't do anything now but wait. She's in the best hands now.'

'How could he do that? How could Monaghan do that to his own wife?' The words came out slowly, haltingly as though Starsky were asking the questions of himself rather than Hutch.

'He was jealous buddy. You had what he could never have.'

'Huh?' pained, clouded blue eyes lifted to meet Hutch's.

'She loves you. I get that now. But she'd never loved Manny. He owned her, yes, but like a man owns a dog, or a car, not a beautiful wife. He could see that he'd never have her love and I guess it never really bothered him till he saw how she was around you.'

'You sayin' this is my fault?' Starsky asked softly.

'No buddy. I'm sayin' you gave her time to be herself. If you're guilty of anything it's that you showed her what she's been missing. You showed her that she was trapped in a loveless marriage and that she could have so much more.'

The brunet stared at a crack in the tiles on the floor for long seconds. 'I love her Hutch.'

'I know you do buddy.'

'We'd be good together.'

'Uh huh. Starsk, can I ask you something?' Hutch wondered how to phrase the question. He'd seen the blood pooled beneath Mel's body, but could find no outward signs of wounds. He had a hunch, but he hoped it would be wrong.

'Yeah.'

'When you and Mel were together, you were "together" weren't ya?'

'What?'

'I mean, you didn't sleep on the sofa every night did ya?'

Starsky shook his head. 'To begin with I did. To begin with, I just wanted her to have somewhere safe to stay, away from that bastard. But then she was having nightmares and….. She was so vulnerable Hutch. She needed me an' I wanted her. We were good together.'

'I thought so.'

'Why? Don't give me the whole "she's a witness" lecture again Blondie. Now's not the time.'

'I wasn't goin' to Starsk, but….'

'Have you ever counted the number of times we've sat in one of these miserable places waitin'?' the brunet interrupted. 'I mean, just how much of our lives we've wasted waitin' for medics to come and give us news?'

Hutch nodded slowly. 'Too long buddy. Far too long.'

'I mean, it all started with that Italian restaurant didn't it?'

'Uh huh. You'd lost so much blood I didn't think you'd make it. And then the poison incident was even worse. When they made me leave so that they could take you upstairs to the ICU and I knew we had less than 2 hours to go. I gotta tell ya buddy, they were the quickest two hours of my life' Hutch said softly, his eyes hazy with memories.

'And then there was the time I almost lost you, when you were missing. Ya know when your car got overturned? I got you to the hospital and they didn't know if they could save your leg and you were pleading with me to keep you awake so they wouldn't cut it off when you were asleep. Then when you got that fuckin' plague and all I could do was wait outside the quarantine ward.'

Hutch snickered. 'Red writing on the window. I remember that. Do you know how long it took the cleaners to get that off? I never heard language like that from a woman! What did you use to write it? I never asked'

'Gillian's lipstick. It was the only thing I could think of.'

'Uh huh. Well it sure made a statement buddy.'

Starsky nodded sadly. 'Yeah, but you know what gets me? I go home at night and before I go to sleep, even after everything we've both been through, it's Terri that I see, lying with that bandage on her head and I hear her voice. Every single night. The memory won't go away, not that I'd want it to coz its special. When I met Mel though, I honestly thought she was the one who might somehow replace Terri. She's so different, but at the same time, I've never felt so alive with a woman as I did do with Mel.'

'Terri was special' the blond said thoughtfully. 'You and she would have made a good couple. I could have seen you with kids.'

'Yeah? I always wanted kids. Well, not then maybe. But now….. I'm 35. It's time to settle down, raise a family. Ma keeps tellin' me she wants to have a grandchild and Nicky don't show any signs of being the responsible Dad type.'

'Lots of little Starskys runnin' around? Is the world ready for that?'

The brunet grinned briefly. 'Don't know about the world, but maybe I am.'

Hutch took a deep breath. 'Well here's the thing Starsk. I mean, when I got to the house and….'

'Family for Monaghan?' The nurse interrupted Hutch's sentence and Starsky leapt to his feet, heading across the room in two strides.

'Yeah, that's me. I mean, I'm not family but I'm…..well, I guess I….. I dunno. Can I see her?' he asked in a rush.

'Are you David Starsky?'

'Uh huh.'

'For a moment. We need to take her up to the OR, but she asked for you. You can have a couple of minutes. Don't tire her and don't upset her. She has something she needs to tell you' the nurse said gently and stood back to let the curly haired cop into the quiet room. Hutch smiled at the nurse and followed his partner inside, standing just inside the door as Starsky walked towards the bed.

Blood stained gauze littered the floor around the bed along with plastic wraps from medial equipment and other detritus and as the brunet approached he saw a bag of deep red blood hanging from a stand, the tube entering Mel's left arm. Another drip fed a clear fluid into her right hand, but apart from a bandage surrounding her leg, there seemed to be no other obvious wounds. As he came to stand by the side of the bed, Mel opened her eyes. It was obvious that she'd been crying.

'Dave' she whispered and raised a hand to take a hold of his. Starsky leaned close, one hand braced on the head of the bed, the other holding Mel's. Slowly he bent and kissed her.

'I'm here honey. How're ya doin'?'

'Dave, I'm so sorry' Mel said softly, her voice breaking. She closed her eyes and another tear rolled down the side of her cheek.

'Sorry? What for? Don't be sorry. You're gonna be fine, I know you are.'

'Dave, listen to me. I….I have something to tell you.'

'Ok, but it can wait honey. Wait till you're stronger. I love you Melanie. I don't want you to be hurt any more. When this is over……will you marry me?'

The woman's face crumpled and she let out a quiet sob. 'I love you too Dave Starsky, more than I ever thought I could love anyone. I need to tell you though. I need to say this now.'

'Save your strength' Starsky crooned softly. 'S'ok, I'm not goin' anywhere.'

'No, you don't understand. Dave, I was pregnant, but…..the fall…..I lost the baby. Your baby. I'm so sorry.'


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

The nurse gently pushed Starsky to one side as the stunned brunet tried to assimilate the news.

'We have to take her to the OR now' she said.

Indigo eyes stared back, unfocused and the young nurse tried again. 'Mr Starsky, we need to take Melanie for her treatment now. She needs to have surgery. You can see her later.'

Starsky blinked, shaking himself mentally. 'Huh? Oh….um, yeah, yeah' he mumbled distractedly. 'Melanie, honey, we'll talk when you get back huh? I love you, don't forget that.'

The tiny woman tried to smile through her tears. 'I love you too Dave. It would have been good – the three of us. I'm so sorry.'

The brunet kissed Mel's hand tenderly and walked with her to the door of the ER. 'We can take her from here. We'll take good care of her' the nurse told him as the gurney was pushed away. Starsky stood watching it go, his hand half raised in a wave. He stayed that way long after the gurney had been pushed around the corner and out of sight, staring after the woman as Hutch watched from the doorway. Although the blond hadn't heard what Melanie had said, his smattering of medical training had hinted at what had caused the bleeding and now he walked forwards and put his hand on his partner's shoulder.

'Starsk, c'mon buddy. Sit down over here huh? You want a coffee?'

Distractedly, the curly haired cop allowed himself to be led back into the small waiting room and he sat down wearily on one of the hard chairs. Leaning forward, he rested his elbows on his knees and put his head in his hands, his fingers wrapped around his curly hair. He remained that way until Hutch came back into the room and held out a Styrofoam cup with hot, black coffee.

'Starsk'

'Huh?'

'Coffee.'

Mechanically, he took it and stared at the dark brown liquid. 'She was expecting a baby' he said very quietly.

'Was?'

'The fall downstairs – she was bleeding. They told her she'd lost it.'

Hutch sat down by Starsky's side. 'I'm sorry buddy, truly I am.'

'She was gonna tell me when we met today. She was gonna tell me that she wanted to come live with me and that she was expecting my child. I was gonna be a Dad.'

The blond sighed deeply, his eyes closed in pain. What could he say? What words were enough to express how he felt? Starsky had always been the one to be footloose and fancy free. He'd never really wanted a serious relationship. He'd always told Hutch that there was too much life to live especially after the Gunther attempt on his life. After that, it was as though he were born again and although marriage and kids were something he liked the thought of, they were always for the future, whenever that might be. Up until now, that is.

Now, with a woman who loved him with as much passion as Starsky himself felt, the time seemed right to settle down and start that family. They'd spoken of it recently and Starsky had had a wistful edge to his voice. Now to have been told that his wish could have come true had it not been for Manny Monaghan…..

'I don't know what to say Starsk.'

'Neither do I. I feel like I should be there with her right now. She was so upset, like it was all her fault. How could she think that? It was that murdering bastard of a husband that did this, not her.'

'I know. I know. But you can be with her after the surgery, if that's what you want. There's always next time' Hutch said softly.

'I need to go see Monaghan' Starsky said suddenly. 'I wanna face that turkey face to face.'

'No, you don't buddy. Leave it to Kelly and Boon. They know what they're doin'. If you want any sort of conviction, you stay well clear ok? You goin' in there with all guns blazin' is only gonna muddy the waters. It won't do you or Mel any good. If anythin' you should let me take you home so that you're rested for when she wakes up.'

Starsky nodded, surprisingly. 'Fine, I'll leave it to the guys to do their stuff, but I can't leave here Hutch. She needs me to be close.'

'She needs you to be fresh as a daisy for when she wakes up. Let me go find out how long she's gonna be huh? We can take it from there.' Hutch got up and went out of the room leaving Starsky alone with his thoughts. The brunet looked down at his hands. He'd never thought of himself as a family man. He'd never really had too much of a conventional family. With his own Dad being away working shifts and his Mom having her hands full with Nicky, Starsky had learned early on that he should be the man of the house when Dad wasn't around. Coming to California had been like a rebirth for him and the sudden freedom from having to look after his Mom and Nicky had gone to his head, making him something of a wild child and a handful for Rosey and Al to look after.

He'd enjoyed the freedom but now he wondered. Would he have felt like this if he and Terri had had the chance to settle down? If that had been the case, would he already be a Dad? Would it be the same? Would it mean the same? The sudden news that he'd lost something he'd never thought he could have brought a weight to his chest, not least because of the pain it had caused Mel to tell him. Starsky sniffed, wiping his nose with the back of his hand and cursed himself for being so sentimental, but like most hard men, he had a soft heart and was easily tipped over into sentimentalism. He snickered to himself as Hutch walked back into the room.

'I spoke with the ER doctor. Mel is waiting in line for the next slot in the OR. They aren't sure how long she's gonna be and then they have to set her leg too. He says it could be another twelve hours before you got to see her buddy. You really should go home and get some rest.'

'12 hours? How come it takes so long?'

Hutch shrugged his shoulders. I guess they're thinkin' about her wakin' up too. C'mon Starsk, what d'ya say we go home and get some sleep. You can be back here by supper time tonight.'

Tiredly, Starsky stood up. 'You sure?'

'Starsk….'

'Ok, ok, I'm comin' the brunet mumbled and followed his partner's back out into the corridor and back to the parking lot. Hutch paused for only a moment when Starsky walked round to the passenger side of the car. Things must be bad if he was allowing Hutch to drive his baby without so much as a comment, but the blond got in without a word and almost silently, they drove towards Ridgeway.

'Have you noticed how many baby stores there are in the city?' Starsky said as they drove through the centre. '…how many women with push chairs?'

'You'll have another chance Starsk. Mel's young, she'll heal and then there'll be a whole baseball team of Starsky's runnin' round the streets.'

'What if they're girls?' Starsky asked with a brief flash of a grin.

'So you start an all girl baseball team. It'll work.'

'D'ya think I should get a bigger place…. I mean for next time?'

'I think you should bring Mel home first buddy.'

'Yeah, but where d'ya think? The beach? Is that good for kids? Or maybe up in the hills. And then there's schools. Shit, how much does that cost? And college funds and university and….'

'Starsk, they aren't even born yet. Give yourselves some space huh? Get to know each other' Hutch said, although he found Starsky's questions endearing and at the same time a little freaky.

'Time? Yeah, sure, but still, there's a lot to consider' the brunet said seriously.

'Like? You're talkin' like you've already got a whole set of little doctors and teachers lined up.'

'Well no kid of mine is gonna be a cop' Starsky said emphatically.

'No?' Hutch cast a glance sideways. 'It was good enough for your Dad and for you.'

'Well it aint good enough for a son of mine. He's gonna make something of himself' the smaller man said proudly.

'Doctor?'

'Brain surgeon….. at the very least' Starsky said as they pulled up outside his house. 'He's gonna make enough money to keep his Mom and me in the manner to which I'd love to become accustomed.'

'Well if you're gonna be fathering the next Einstein, you should probably get some sleep. Giving birth to a genius is likely to be a tiring business buddy.' Hutch got out of the car and followed Starsky up the steps to his front door.

'Uh huh, but not half as tiring as makin' 'em to begin with' the brunet smiled, his eyebrows wiggling suggestively.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

It was growing dark when the two detectives awoke. Hutch had taken the couch and groaned as his back cracked from the strain of lying coiled around the wonky spring that refused to lie flat. He levered himself into a sitting position and dug his fingers into the knot of muscle as he arched his body backwards trying to ease out the kinks.

Starsky came out of the bathroom with a toothbrush jammed between his teeth and the remains of shaving foam on his chocolate coloured sideburns. He dabbed at it with the towel that hung around his neck and made his way back into the bedroom, emerging five minutes later in clean jeans and tee shirt. He held out a fresh shirt for Hutch and the blond followed suit, showering, shaving and changing whilst Starsky made coffee and warmed up a can of soup.

'Have you telephoned the hospital?' Hutch asked as he sat down at the kitchen table.

'Uh huh. They said there was a lady cop with Mel, that she was tired but that the operation had been a success. I guess Kellerman and Boon must've decided to use one of the women to take Mel's statement.'

'Sure. Sounds like everything went ok' Hutch agreed,

'I have a good feelin' about this Blondie. We get Manny Monaghan behind bars, Mel gets a divorce and we relocate to a nice house on the south side, out by the beach.'

'You've got it all planned huh?'

'Yup. Down to the last detail. White picket fence, flowers in the window. We'll get a dog, maybe a horse for the kids. She's gonna want for nothin'. Mel deserves the best after what she's put up with all these years.'

'And you're the one to give it to her?'

'That's right. Get a move on, we have to visit the future Mrs Starsky and I need to call for the biggest bunch of red roses I can find' Starsky said, standing impatiently by the door as Hutch got up from the table, shouldered into his jacket and followed his partner outside and back to the car.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Sergeant Irene Robertson sat by the side of the bed and handed Melanie another tissue. Mel's eyes were red rimmed and swollen with crying and she looked far too frail and young to be a wife to someone with as bad a reputation as Monaghan.

Sergeant Robertson had read the reports on the case. When Kellerman had phoned the women's refuge, they'd put Robertson onto the case, especially once the detectives at the Metro had explained that they could only hold Manny Monaghan for another few hours before his lawyer blew a gasket and Manny was a free man again. They admitted they had barely enough evidence to arrest him on, let alone get a case together that the DA would take seriously. Which was where Sergeant Robertson came in. This was her speciality and she hot footed it around to the hospital as soon as she'd got the details. In cases like this, there wasn't a second to lose.

'When?' Mel asked quietly.

'Now. Your husband will be being released soon and unless you tell me that you want to go back to him, then this is the only way that I can see. It's a tough decision and I know you aren't feeling a hundred percent, but I have to push you for a yes or no' Irene said firmly but gently.

'Can I make a phone call? There's someone I need to tell' Melanie asked.

Reluctantly, the cop shook her head and Mel sighed deeply. She thought about the night Dave had come home bloodied, cut and bruised. She thought about what Manny had threatened and how she couldn't bear the thought of the handsome, dark haired cop being hurt any more. Slowly she nodded her head.

'Just do it. Now. Before I change my mind' she said in a voice that was barely above a whisper.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

The Torino drew into the parking lot and stopped. Starsky got out of the driver's side of the car and leaned in through the open doorway to retrieve a huge bunch of a dozen blood red roses wrapped in cellophane and tied with a big red ribbon. He plunged his nose into the midst of them and inhaled the perfume.

'Do you think she'll like 'em?' he asked.

'She's sure to buddy, they cost you a small fortune. Why don't you go up there on your own? I'll catch up with you in a little while huh? You two should have some time alone.'

'I should have stopped at that jewellers we saw' Starsky said, patting his back jeans pocket where his bill fold was. 'I wanted to do this right. I wanted to give her a ring, ya know?'

Hutch smiled. 'I'm sure she'll appreciate the sentiment, even if you don't have a sparkler for her finger. She'd be crazy to pass you up.'

'Ya think?' the brunet grinned almost shyly.

'Uh huh. Apart from anythin' else, what other crazy chick would have ya?'

'Oh gee thanks buddy. I can always rely on you to burst my bubble. Gimme half an hour and then come up huh?'

The flaxen haired cop nodded and watched his partner walk towards the entrance to the hospital with an exaggerated strut in his step. He'd never seen Starsky happier, not even when Terri had been around. That vivacious brunette had been charming, fun loving, independent and a great match for Starsky, but Mel was all that and so much more and Hutch snickered to himself. My God! The great Dave Starsky finally making moves to settle down and start a family! Would wonders never cease? Slowly, the blond walked on over to the big building. There was a coffee shop on the ground floor. He'd while away time with a cup of coffee and a magazine until the two love birds had had time to hatch their wedding plans.

Starsky made his way into the hospital, through the main entrance and stopped at the enquiry desk. The receptionist looked up at the handsome man who was partly obscured by the roses and smiled.

'Melanie Monaghan? Can you tell me which room she's in please?' he asked impatiently.

The young woman looked through her list. 'Your wife is in room 203 on the second floor Mr Monaghan.'

'Oh um, I'm not Mr Monaghan, but thanks anyway' the brunet grinned and looked around for the elevator. He saw the sign in the corner of the entrance hall and walked towards it, pushing the "up" button as he whistled tunelessly under his breath. In truth, he felt a little light headed, even a little nervous now that he'd made the decision, but nothing was going to stop him. Melanie was the woman for him, he knew that for a fact and despite the butterflies in the pit of his stomach, Starsky knew that there would be no regrets; he was doing the right thing. There was a ping from the elevator car as it landed on the ground floor and as the door opened and he got in, the second car also landed and Irene Robertson walked out, a case file under her arm.

Starsky stood in the elevator staring at his reflection in the polished metal. Self consciously he ran his fingers through his unruly curls, trying to coax them into some kind of order. He wasn't a vain man, but on this occasion, he thought he should try to look his best. The elevator car came to a rest and the door opened out onto a broad, pale green painted corridor. Starsky looked left and right, looking for the numbers on the various doors leading off and headed to his right, counting off the rooms. 200, 201, 202. This was it. Room 203. The brunet hesitated, his hand on the door handle. He took a deep breath, checked the bunch of roses again and opened the door slowly.

The room was in darkness, the blinds drawn and the lights off. It took a few moments for the brunet's eyes to become accustomed to the dark.

'Mel?' he called softly. 'Mel honey?'

There was no answer and Starsky crossed to the sideboard at the back of the room and flicked on the table lamp there. He turned and looked quizzically at the empty bed. Not just empty, it had been stripped of its sheets and blankets and stood waiting to be made up again. There were no other trappings in the room showing that it was inhabited and on impulse, Starsky rushed to the door and checked the number again. 203. That's what the receptionist had said.

Rushing out into the corridor, the brunet headed for the nurses station. A woman in a dark blue uniform looked up and smiled.

'Melanie. Melanie Monaghan. Which room is she in please?' the curly haired cop asked quickly.

'You are?.....'

'Starsky. Dave Starsky. I'm a friend.'

The nurse fumbled in a drawer in the desk for a moment and brought out an envelope with his name written on it. 'Mrs Monaghan isn't at this hospital any more' she explained. 'A police officer came by this afternoon and spent some time with her. She thought you may be coming back and she asked me to give you this.'

Stunned, Starsky put the flowers down on the desk and took the envelope with a shaking hand. He turned it over and saw the police crest embossed on the back of the paper. Quickly he slit the seal with his thumb nail and took out the single sheet of white paper.

Detective Starsky,

Melanie Monaghan has been accepted into the women's refuge relocation program.

She asked me to leave this note to explain to you that she has had no chance to say goodbye and that you should make no attempt, official or unofficial to try to find her.

Signed

Sergeant Irene Robertson

Underneath it, in a shaky hand was written six stark words.

Dave. I love you. I'm sorry.

Starsky stared at the paper as though somehow the words would change if he concentrated on them for long enough.

'How long?' he asked softly, his throat dry.

'Sorry?'

'Since she left. How long?'

The blue uniformed woman saw the pain in this man's eyes. 'She left a couple of hours ago in a private ambulance. Sergeant Robertson has only just gone. I'm surprised you didn't see her on your way up here. I'm very sorry Detective.'

The brunet pocketed the letter, left the flowers on the desk where he'd dropped them and turned swiftly back towards the elevator. He jabbed at the call button, waited no more than a second and then ran for the stair well, bounding down the steps three at a time, hitting the walls on the corners in his haste to get down to the ground floor again, his only intent being on getting a hold of Robertson to find out where she'd sent Melanie.

Back in the reception area, Hutch had walked into the building and was making his way over to the coffee shop when he saw Irene Robertson walking purposefully towards the door. He stopped and smiled.

'Irene! What brings you here?' he asked. 'Can I buy you a coffee?' Hutch and Starsky had worked with the sergeant on a couple of violence cases and the blond liked Robertson's no nonsense approach to her work and her ability to put the female victims at their ease. She was one of the few women Judges would listen to and several lawyers had been known to change their advice to their male clients once they knew she was on the case. The sergeant stopped.

'Hutch. Is Starsky with you?' she asked.

'Huh? No, he's pursuing his love interest' the blond grinned. 'He's gone up to her room to make an honest woman of her. Can you believe it? Romeo Starsky?'

'He's gone to see Melanie Monaghan hasn't he?' Irene said quietly.

A fleeting look of fear crossed Hutch's handsome face. 'Yeah, how did you….'

'Hutch I think you should prepare yourself. He's not gonna be too happy when he….'

At that moment, Starsky burst through the door to the stair well, looking wildly around him. He saw Hutch and a second later he saw Robertson and ran over to her, grabbing her arm and almost spinning her off her feet. He took the note from his pocket and waved it under the woman's nose.

'What the fuck is this all about?' he snapped, his face inches from Irene's.

Robertson fixed him with an unflinching stare. 'Not here Starsky. I'll explain but let's go somewhere shall we?'

'No! Right here, right now. You tell me what you've done with my girl.'

'Starsk? Irene? What's this all about?' Hutch asked.

'Ask her! Ask that meddlin' son-of-a…… She sent Mel away. She's put Mel on a relocation program.' Starsky's face was red, the sinews on his neck standing out like cords as he glared at the woman cop.

'I did what I needed to do to keep her safe and you know it' Irene said gently. She looked around and spotted a small conference room with its door open. She headed for it and the two detectives followed. As she sat down at the small table, Starsky stood ramrod straight and stiff with indignation as Hutch closed the door.

'Will someone tell me what the hell is going on?' the blond asked.

'She's sent Mel away' Starsky raged.

'For her own good Dave. I didn't make her. She chose to go' Irene said calmly. 'You know I would never force anyone to give up their previous life but there are times when safety is an issue and….'

'I could've kept her safe. I'm a cop for Christ's sake, that's what I do.'

'And what if she didn't want you to? It looks like you've been on the rough end of the deal already.' Robertson nodded at the strapping still on Starsky's wrist and the healing scars on his face.

'I can handle that. I can handle Monaghan, especially when he gets put away.'

Irene sighed. 'Two things. First, Monaghan isn't gonna be going anywhere. There was no evidence to say he assaulted his wife, at least none that would stick in a court of law. And two, she didn't want you to get hurt. She told me she couldn't allow that to happen, it would be too painful for her.'

'I wouldn't get hurt. I have Hutch to watch my back and….'

Irene raised her hand. 'Mel is a smart woman, and compassionate. She loves you more than I think you will ever know. She told me that she knows her husband. She knows what he's capable of and she couldn't live with having to wait for you to come home at night, worrying if you were gonna be ok. She needed to know that you were safe. Dave, she cared for you so much she was willing to give up everything for you. The least you can do is honour her wishes.'

'Wishes? What about my wishes?' Starsky asked quietly, sinking down onto the other chair in the small room. He suddenly looked small, broken almost and Irene felt a desperate need to comfort him some way. Instead, she drew on all her professional detachment and sighed.

'She knew you loved her too, that's why she took the decision. She asked me to ask you not to go looking for her. Starsky, this was a difficult decision for her, and one she didn't take lightly, especially so soon after she'd lost a baby. She needed time, but there wasn't any. She also asked that you stay away from Monaghan and I second that. Facing him would only make things all the harder for you and for her. Can you do that?'

Numbly, the curly haired man nodded. Starsky felt empty, as though every light in his world had suddenly been extinguished and he would remain in constant darkness for the rest of his life. He'd only just come to terms with the fact that he was going to propose to Mel; he'd only just assimilated the fact that he'd been a prospective Dad, if only for a short time, and yet the prospect had filled him with a joy he'd never thought possible. Now there was nothing but cold, and dark and a great aching void that he felt nothing would ever fill.

Irene stood and shuffled her papers. 'I can't say any more. I suggest you go home and get some rest, it's been traumatic for you, I know.'

Starsky barely raised his head in acknowledgment, but Hutch smiled briefly. 'I'll take care of him' he said as he opened the door for the woman. 'And thanks, you did the right thing and I know it's always tough.'

Sergeant Robertson looked back at the brunet, who was staring at the wooden top of the table. 'More than you could possibly now' she said with feeling.

Hutch turned back to his partner after the woman had gone. 'Starsk, come on buddy. There's nothing for you here now. Let me take you home.'

'She's gone.' The words were barely more than a whisper.

'I know buddy, I know. C'mon, let's get you home huh?' Gently but firmly Hutch got hold of Starsky's arm and pulled him to his feet, almost holding him up as they walked slowly out to the car. Once again, Hutch took the driver's seat and once again, Starsky made no comment as they drove through the late evening streets. His eyes were fixed on the dashboard, unblinking and his silence was almost painful in its intensity.

When they finally drew to a halt and Hutch switched off the engine, the brunet finally looked up and blinked. 'Thought you were taking me home' he said softly.

'You looked like you needed a friend and I didn't want you being on your own tonight. You can even have the bed if you want' Hutch said as he got out of the car and opened the door to Venice Place. He watched as Starsky got out and walked to the door like an old man, the strut in his step gone and his shoulders bowed as though the weight of the world were on his shoulders. Together they went into the small apartment and Hutch took out a bottle of bourbon and two glasses. He handed one to his partner and poured a heafty slug of amber fluid into each one.

'To one very brave woman' he said, raising the glass in salute.

'To the woman I'll always love' Starsky whispered and downed the fiery liquid in one.

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

**Two days later.**

That night two days ago, the two men had demolished the bottle of bourbon and had finally fallen asleep in the living room on Hutch's sofa. They'd rung into the Metro the next day, but Irene Robertson had beaten them to it and had spoken to Dobey long before they got a chance. The Captain, not known for displays of sentimentalism had given the two men a leave of absence for three days. His excuse to Hutch was that he didn't want a moping cop littering his office. The blond read the meaning behind the words and was eternally grateful to his boss.

The first day after Mel's departure was the worst. Starsky could barely raise his head and spoke so little that Hutch worried whether he need some help from a doctor to get through his pain. The next day, the blond decided that they both needed to get out of the house and so he packed a bag and drove Starsky down to the beach.

Now they were sat on the warm sand, looking out to the ocean and the never ending waves crashing onto the shore. They'd been there since lunchtime and had drunk the six pack of beers and eaten the sandwiches Hutch had made. Now the sun was beginning to set, colouring the sky with orange, magenta and scarlet. The kids had gone, taken home to bed by their parents and the two men were finally alone with their thoughts.

Starsky had begun to talk a little more as the salt air and the soothing sounds of the ocean had eased his heartache a little and Hutch had been happy just to sit back and let his partner unburden himself. With the rapidly gathering darkness, Hutch finally made a move and got to his feet, brushing the sand from his bare legs.

'Time to go home buddy' he said.

Starsky looked up at him and sighed. 'Back to reality huh?'

'Sooner or later you've got to face it partner.'

'I know, I know. Ma always used to say a good dose of work takes your mind of your troubles.'

'She's a wise woman, your Ma.'

'I guess.' The brunet got to his feet, brushed the sand off of his back and pulled his tee shirt back over his head. He stood for a moment looking as a child on the boardwalk ran up to her Father and asked for a ride. The man laughed, hoisted the youngster onto his shoulders and walked off. As Starsky started to pack up the picnic things Hutch tapped him on the shoulder.

'Huh?'

'For what it's worth Gordo, I think you'd have made a great Dad.'

Starsky grinned fleetingly. 'You gettin' soapy on me Hutchinson?'

Hutch grinned back. 'Shuddup mushbrain' he said gently and swallowed down the lump in his own throat.

**Epilogue – 7 months later.**

The nurse arrived, carrying a tiny bundle wrapped in a small pink blanket. Carefully she handed the sleeping baby to Melanie who looked down at it tiredly. It had been a long labour and she'd been on her own, in Baltimore, a long way from her real home in California, but now the pain all seemed worth it. She smiled at the tiny bundle and gently pulled the blanket away to better see the perfect, sweet face.

'Hello you. I'm your Mommy' she whispered to the sleeping child.

'And a very special one too. It's quite rare to lose one twin whilst the other survives' the midwife said as she bustled around the small room. 'She's perfect in every way and what a riot of dark curls! Have you thought of a name yet?'

Melanie looked up with a wistful look in her eyes. 'Oh yes, I've thought of one. Meet my daughter. She's called Star.'

------------fin-------------


End file.
